Transcripts For BBCNEWS BBC News 20240713

Now got to leave the stage. Im shaun ley with todays other headlines. Faster journeys, news routes and more trains its all change on the railways from tomorrow. Protesters against italys far right party the league gather in rome, for whats expected to be the biggest demonstration yet by grassroots activists, that call themselves the sardines. And at 3 30pm therell be an electioncast special, when adam fleming and the team look back at yesterdays result. Thats coming up here on the bbc news channel. Good afternoon. The Prime Minister is visiting the north east of england, where a surge of support for the conservatives in traditional labour seats helped his party to its biggest election win in 30 years. Boris johnson met supporters in newly conservative sedgefield, tony blairs old constituency. The labour Leaderjeremy Corbyn is coming under increasing pressure to resign immediately after his party suffered its worst Election Results since the 1930s. Our report from matt cole contains some flashing images. Workington, bishop auckland, leigh all north of england fortresses which fell to the conservatives. And sedgefield yes, tony blairs old seat, sedgefield. Borisjohnson arrived there this morning because it, too, is now tory blue, and make no mistake, the choice of seat to visit, that of labours successful former pm, will have been chosen to maximise the imagery. I know that people may have been breaking the voting habits of generations to vote for us, and i want you, the people of the north east, to know that we in the conservative party and i will your repay your trust. Cheering when mps return here at the start of the week, the conservatives will be buoyant. 365 of them willing to do johnsons bidding. For labour it will be very different. Their mps will be sore, disappointed and looking for a new leader one of those tipped to run declined to declare her interest this morning. We dont, we should have a period of mourning, we need to have a chance to stop and think, 0k . Ive got nothing else to say. Jeremy corbyn wants to mind the shop until a new leader is elected, leading through the reflection period but his critics reject that idea. I dont think you can have the proper, deep reflection that we need to have under the leadership of a person who thinks that the programme is all right, that he worked really hard, and that the only thing that was wrong was that the media didnt like him, and that the brexit message was wrong. These are happier times for the snp leader, here amongst her winners. 48 mps were elected on the scottish nationalist ticket, a mandate, says nicola sturgeon, for a second Scottish Independence referendum. This is a watershed election. It couldnt really be clearer now that the majority in scotland want a different future to that that has been chosen by much of the rest of the uk. Scotland said no to borisjohnson and the tories and no to brexit, and sent a clear message that we want the future of scotland to be in the hands of people who live here. The problem is this man needs to say yes and last night he made it clear he is not going to. That will not deter the snp, so prepare for a Long Campaign in the months and possibly years to come. From wrexham to redcar, bolsover to blyth valley dozens of seats which traditionally belonged to the labour heartlands went from red to blue. Speaking earlier today, the shadow chancellorjohn mcdonnell confirmed he wouldnt be part of the next shadow cabinet. There is always an interim before a new leader is elected so what better than to put the current team in, because there will be a queens speech and a budget as well, use that expertise for the interim period, but also allow the rest of the party to engage in that thorough debate about the future and the new leader, and it will be a constructive debate. We will learn lessons and listen to people about what went right and wrong, and then be ready. My fear is that weve got a long haul now, possibly five years. The two choices that we face are still there huge, grotesque levels of inequality and, secondly, the issue that never really emerged in the election campaign, which was kind of this existential threat. That must be our priority. With brexit, we will see what the government brings back in terms of the negotiations, but the people decided we need to implement that, but we have to get the best deal to protectjobs and the economy. The overwhelming issue was brexit, thats the first thing, and the labour party were caught on the horns of a dilemma. Im an example of this. We had a party which was largely supportive of remain, but many of us represented leave constituencies, so we could have gone one way, to leave, which we would have alienated a lot of our remain support. If we went for remain, wed alienate a lot of our leave support. We tried to bring the country together and it failed. We have to accept that, take it on the chin and move on. The new leadership coming in, i think it will enable us to move forward on the key issues, getting a brexit deal that works for all of us, tackling these grotesque levels of inequality, and the big one is Climate Change, and my fear is five years of a fossil fuel backed government, under boris johnson, means we will miss this five year opportunity of saving our planet. John mcdonnell there. One seat which has been taken by the conservatives is sedgefield, which had been labour since the 1930s and was the constituency of the former prime minster, tony blair. Sedgefields outgoing labour mp, phil wilson has been speaking to the bbc. Well, i never take any election for granted but so many people said to me on the doorstep, phil, if you had a different leader, id vote for you. Youd walk it. There wouldnt be a problem. Youd probably form the next government. So they thought that, and the one thing that was holding them back from voting labour was the current leadership of the labour party, and you cant get away from that. So did Jeremy Corbyn lose you your seat . Yes. Has anybody. Has he, john mcdonnell, any of the labour top team, been in touch . No, no. No. I wouldnt have thought they would be. And its. You know, i would never take these elections for granted. I never have and i never would, if i ever stand again. But when its every doorstep, its the same issue, then you know youve got a problem and you know what the problem is, and to try and disguise it, which i think the leadership of the labour party is now by saying it was brexit or its the Mainstream Media, just sort of like man up, basically, because the problem was Jeremy Corbyn. It was the worldview that was being promoted by him and his leadership. And weve got to face up to that. And if you complain about the Mainstream Media and then they find all these stories about terrorism and about hamas and hezbollah, then dont go and talk to them and dont be seen with them and then expect to get the treatment that, you know, not to expect the treatment youve been getting off the Mainstream Media. So a lot of the stories, theres no smoke without fire, basically. Jeremy corbyn said this morning that he wont lead labour into another general election. Is that enough right now, or should he have resigned . He should resign. Ithink, you know. I think, if he decides to stay on, if its not into the next election, which is, i would assume, in 2024, thats obviously five years, then, you know, thats going to do even more damage and labour voters are just going to think that were not taking them seriously, you know. And youve got to fess up, the project has failed, or the. You know, the. The project has failed, and youve now got to leave the stage and vacate it for somebody else, who might be able to bring the labour party back to labour voters and our labour communities that are now faced, because of this whole debacle, with five years of a tory government. And i think we can win seats like this back. I think in this general election, it seemed to me that everyone was voting against something, not for something. So what has happened in sedgefield and in darlington, in stockton south, in redcar, can be reversed, but only without major kind of surgery to the body. The body politic of the labour party. And weve got to face up to what the problems are, because if we dont, theres no reason for why the labour party should exist. Phil wilson, the former labour mp for sedgefield, we can speak now to the political journalist tony grew. Ifi if i can start with the question of the labour leadership, are there any candidates that could turn things around . Its a bit early for them even to think about who their next leader will be when they havent unpacked the mistakes made during the election and they need to think about what sort of leader the people they need to win over would like rather than the sort of leader they as members would prefer. We see some names being floated, whether there is an alliance between david lammy and lisa nani, richard burgin, you say its too soon but the rice has already started. I would contend the race started before the election campaigns were even over but that doesnt mean the front runners will end up leading the party. I think labour needs a female leader from the north, who can speak in a language that working class voters will understand. Apart from those three criteria its a very open field. Do you think given the structures of the labour party being put into left wing hands, given the momentum membership that they are likely to choose someone of a more centrist appeal . Thats a question for the labour party, they need to ask themselves if they are a left Wing Pressure Group were a potential government. They have lost dozens potential government. They have lost d oze ns of potential government. They have lost dozens of hard line seeds so there is something wrong with the message but if they want to win a general election, they not only have to win back the seeds they have lost, they need to win seats that in this election voted for conservative candidates. But the conservatives, it brexit is well behind them in five years and they are no longer facing Jeremy Corbyn, it will be much harderfor them to retain the midlands, the north west, North East Wales . Midlands, the north west, North East Wales . I would put at the other way round, labour have to win their seats back and if the conservatives invest as much in Public Services as they say they are, if the nhs is turned around and im not saying it would be, but people see there are more police on the streets, shorter queues at the hospital, the question is what cant labour offer them . This is a more existential crisis for labour. And if labour dont choose someone who was successful in electorally, is at the end of the party . You say its existential, what about a new party, centrist joining the liberal democrats . Im old enough to remember the 1997 election and people asking if this was the death of the conservative party and they failed to win in 2001 and 2005 now have a majority so i wouldnt write of the labour party yet but they need to have a serious think about how to win back their heartlands other marginal seats. Does corbyn have to go now or should he wait while the leadership process unfolds . He will no doubt want to influence it. After the election i thought he should have resigned immediately and then changed my mind, mostly because the First Six Months of a new government will be about them, the opposition will be irreleva nt about them, the opposition will be irrelevant for a while so it may be better if he stays in place while the party has a think about what it will offer people and who its leadership will be. In terms of the conservatives, the change you are talking about and others are talking about bringing two more deprived parts of the country is complex and its normally long term and other governments have tried, its not that they are forgotten but its ha rd to that they are forgotten but its hard to do. I would take my template from the 1997 Labour Government who offered a crackdown on crime and said they would reduce anti social behaviour and homelessness, they would improve schools and hospitals and medical staff, they did all those things, it is possible with a majority government. Its ten years since we have had a majority government so if you have control of the house of commons you can achieve much in four years. But you can perhaps announce Infrastructure Spending but how do you create jobs in all those times which are pretty impoverished, the schools arent necessarily there, may be the work ethic isnt there and they are anti immigrant . Ethic isnt there and they are antiimmigrant . Im not a conservative Party Politician so its not for me to answer that question, infrastructure takes time but recruiting police and nurses doesnt take five years and setting a direction of the government doesnt take five years and i dont think its right to say people are against ethnic minorities, they have been abused by politicians but the vast majority are just like us and they have as much of a stake in this country as anyone else. It is a broadbrush statement to say people are one way 01 broadbrush statement to say people are one way or the other but immigration has been a factor and people are worried about theirjobs, benefits, the make up of the places they live in south regenerating these places is tough, it is easy to say you will splash the cash but it doesnt necessarily work. The Biggest Issue here has been brexit and once we leave the eu at the end of january, anything else and once we leave the eu at the end ofjanuary, anything else becomes about consent so could the uk continue to pay into the eu . We could do that and the government would argue its something we have chosen to do. This iteration of the new government is only a few days old so i would caution waiting until the queens speech on thursday which will set out the programme for the year ahead but there is a huge opportunity for the conservatives and part of their responsibility will not just be and part of their responsibility will notjust be to hold onto their heartland seats but the seats they now find they represent. Thank you very much for your time. If you want to have a closer look at how that massive majority happened, just scroll through our interactive map and witnessed the gains and losses that made for a momentous night. You can visit bbc. Co. Uk news or the bbc news app. And now to my colleague shaun ley for the rest of the days news. Thank you very much. Lets get a look at the headlines now. The Prime Minister tells supporters in tony blairs old constituency in north east england that they have changed the Political Landscape and the country. Faster journies, news routes and more trains its all change on the railways from tomorrow. Protesters against italys far right party the league gather in rome, for whats expected to be the biggest demonstration yet by grassroots activists, that call themselves the sardines. And that call themselves the sardines. In sport, mohan twice and in sport, Mohammed Salas scored twice for liverpool as they beat watford in the premier league, moving 11 points clear at the top of the table. Two tries in the last five minutes so two tries in the last five minutes so it cannot snatch victory against gloucester in the european champions cup. And patrick reeds caddy has been thrown out of golfs president s cup after he allegedly shoved a fan who he claimed had allegedly abused patrick reed. Verbally abused. Rail passengers are being urged to check their train times before travelling from tomorrow, as a new winter timetable comes into effect. Train Companies Say they plan to increase services, cutjourney times and add new routes across the country, following investment in infrastructure and rolling stock. Our Business Correspondent Katie Prescott has the details. This is the nightmare scenario. When train timetables were changed in may last year, chaos ensued. Standing room only, as passengers faced cancellations, delays and overcrowding. But the organisation representing the train Companies Says this time things will be different. What were doing now is were looking at each other in the eye, whether it be train operators or infrastructure managers, and saying, are you really ready to put these new services on . And if they look as if they would impact either punctuality or reliability, they are pulled from being an additional service. We dont want to go through what happened last year. If these timetable changes are a success, some parts of the uk will benefit from faster and more frequent services. Tomorrow will see the biggest timetable change on the Great Western Railway Network since the 1970s. The electrification of the line between london and bristol will shave 12 minutes off the quickest trains. The maesteg and conwy lines in wales will get sunday services for the first time, and there will be major improvements on the scotrail network, with Additional Trains in north east scotland, as well as extra seats between edinburgh and glasgow. Passengers are advised to check before they travel, as many train times are changing from tomorrow. One woman has been seriously injured and another received minor after a stabbing in the hindley area of wigan. Great Manchester Police responded to reports of a double stabbing at around 10 30 this morning. Officers are not looking for anyone else in connection with the incident. Police have officially named the first victim of the white island volcano eruption in new zealand, as Recovery Efforts continue. Krystal eve browitt was a 21 year old australian who was visiting the island with her family. Her father and sister are both in hospital with serious injuries. 15 deaths have been now been confirmed from mondays eruption, while about 20 people are in intensive care the bbcs phil mercer explained earlier how the search for surivors is rogressing. For surivors is progressing. For the remaining two bodies. Police divers and their colleagues from the navy have been in the contaminated waters off white island and those seas have been contaminated by that volcanic eruption on monday. So ash, chemicals in the water and when the divers have to come out of the water, they must be decontaminated. Visibility is not good in the water. What theyre looking for is a body. A body was seen in the sea, 2a hours after the eruption. So, the authorities believe that there are two more victims that they need to retrieve. One of them is believed to be in the water. The other is still thought to be on the island. There will be no attempt to go back into land on the island today, so the authorities are concentrating their efforts on the seas, looking for one of those last known victims. Tens of thousands of people have gathered in rome for what the organisers hope will be the biggest street protest against italy s far right party, league, led by the former deputy Prime Minister Matteo Salvini. The movement, called the sardines, started last month and has grown rapidly. Our rome correspondent, make lowen, is at the protests in the italian capital. Theyve just broken out into their anthem of the sardine movement, the antifascist partisan song, bella ciao. Crowd sings bella ciao, ciao, ciao. And this is what this movement represents. It is fighting against the values of fascism that they believe are espoused now by italys far right here. Matteo salvini, the former deputy Prime Minister who is now in opposition, he leads the league party, and this movement has sprung up as a spontaneous protest against him. It started just a month ago as a flash mob in the northern italian city of bologna, the idea of four friends to gather 6000 people in the square there as Matteo Salvini was due to launch a campaign for a regional election. Double the number of people came and so sparked this street movement. They call themselves the sardines because theyre so tightly packed into squares, and in the last month, they have gathered in the length and breadth of italy. And they have really stunned italy by the speed with which they have grown, by the numbers turning out, and they have really caught Matteo Salvini by surprise. Lets talk now to analissa piras, an italian filmmaker and political observer. Thank you for coming in to talk to us. Thank you for coming in to talk to us. What do you make of this movement so far . Its fascinating because its so young, just one month and it has managed to mobilise so month and it has managed to mobilise so many people everywhere in italy and has got to rome, to the Historic Place where big projects gathered. What is lovely is also the jolly nas and creativity of it so people are building their own sardines, they are trying to sew their own sardines so are trying to sew their own sardines so its creative and festive and apolitical but is sending a strong and serious message. Its interesting because of the sense to left and centre of italian politics has been on the defensive for a long time and Matteo Salvini and the league appeared to have a lot of momentum and were winning victories in unexpected places, is that what lies behind this reaction, a silent group that has started to speak up, not perhaps well represented by politicians . Yes, its a response to that triumph in social media and new technology that the new populist fascist force represented by Matteo Salvini has done so this is italian Civic Society saying no to those kind of anti immigration, racist, extremist views of Matteo Salvini and its saying it in a powerful way because it is very young, spontaneously organised by young people, the founders are just for friends in their 30s who do not really belong to politics. They said they only put up their Facebook Page 15 days ago, its an extraordinary speed because things can grow quickly and then dissipate quickly, thatis quickly and then dissipate quickly, that is the challenge to sustain it. Italy has a long story of this creative and powerful flash italy has a long story of this creative and powerfulflash movement that happens and then disappears. We remember in 2002 there was a famous one which was led somehow by that film maker nanna moratti and there have been powerful movements about womens e qualities and they tend to disappear but they play an Important Role in that they wake up Political Parties to take attention of what people are saying. I wonder where this might go because one thinks of the five movement, beppo grail, the comedian who launched that and there was the sense that was a Grass Roots Movement that has ended up in government and i guess it becomes a different thing at that stage. How can they keep this going because there are important elections coming up there are important elections coming up next month . Next month, in fact this movement is unusual because it is specifically targeted at keeping savini out of the traditional left wing region but his movement is growing strongly because it is capitalising on racism and anti immigration so this movement is pushing for stopping him getting to this region. We dont know where it will go but in my mind its important its happening because it sending a clear message to the parties in government, that left wing pd and the five Star Movement that there is a strong support for them to take a stronger sta nce support for them to take a stronger stance against these fascist tendencies. And why sardines . Sardines, its funny because they wa nted sardines, its funny because they wanted it to be as packed as possible in the square next to her Matteo Salvini was going to be so they sought he would have 5000 people and they said we will beat 6000, lets pack ourselves like sardines, but then it has become a powerful image of what people can do when they get together many people and they want to be silent, they dont want to be screaming like Matteo Salvini. Thank you. Negotiations at the United Nations Climate Summit in madrid are continuing this weekend, without an agreement in sight. The two week summit, known as cop25, was meant to decide on rules for the implementation of the 2015 paris climate agreement. Many key issues were left open after last years summit in poland, and remain unresolved. Our environment correspondent matt mcgrath explained the latest developments. Theyve gone into overtime here at this particular conference. Its not unusual that talks at the un about Climate Change go into overtime, it seems to happen every year. I think delegates came here two weeks ago hoping to put some urgency into the negotiations, hoping to see an agreement that came out of here that would emphasise what they call ambition, which they wanted to see a range of countries put new pledges on the table by the end of next year, when this conference will move to glasgow. Thats become potentially the main Sticking Point here. A number of countries, the European Union and small island states, are keen to see those pledges and a timetable of those pledges on the table by the end of next year. A number of other countries are less keen on doing that. As you said, there are a number of other issues, as well. Theres arguments about carbon markets, about compensation for smaller island states who may suffer the damages caused by Climate Change. Those have also proved very sticky, and the atmosphere here at the moment isnt particularly good. I think there is a great pressure on the countries here to compromise, i mean, compromise. Nothing is agreed here until everything is agreed, so it works by unanimity. I think there would be an awful lot of pressure for countries to come forward with proposals that would be acceptable to everybody. Theyve been trying to do that, theyve worked through the night to try and find common ground. When they had a Plenary Meeting this morning, or a stock taking as its called here, there were many objections on lots of different questions and i think thats one of the things thats causing a lot of people worry here, that its notjust one issue or two issues, there are a range of issues on which people feel their voices arent being heard, where the science is not being reflected and where the voices of protesters in the streets arent being reflected either. And so i think theres a lot of work to do to get that compromise, but theres still, i think, quite a few hours to go for the negotiators to secure it. Weather forecasters are warning australia could experience its hottest day on record next week. Temperatures are expected to peak in many areas from wednesday the Current Record ofjust over 50 degrees celsius was set in 1960. New fire warnings have been issued for western parts of the country as well as queensland. Its one of the biggest nights in the showbiz calendar yes, the strictly come dancing final is on tonight, and promises glitter aplenty and some special performances. The serious business, of course, is the dance off involving the celebrities and their partners competing for he glitterball trophy. Ahead of tonights final, lizo mzimba has been speaking to the remaining three couples. After 13 weeks, three couples are left, all hoping to be crowned strictly champions. Each pair will have three routines their favourite dance from the series, a judges pick, and a show dance. So, how are they feeling ahead of tonight . Ecstatic. Overwhelmed