Today and always. The freeman foundation. By judy and Peter Blum Kovler foundation; puuing solutions for americas neglected needs. And by contributions to this pbs station from viewers like you. Thank you. Anchor hello, this is side source for bbc viewers in the u. K. And around the world. We are covering the latest developments and analysis in britain and globally. Everything has is ready for liftoff of the first commercial flight taking astronauts to the International Space ion. Reporter i am jane obrien at the Kennedy Space center where the weather will be a deciding factor for a we have had a Tornado Warning and there is a 40 chance this launch will go ahead. Kasia Boris Johnson coming under pressure from mps over his refusal to sack his top advisor, but he hits back during 90 minutes of questioning. I have no reason to depart from what i have already said. Kasia as protests rumble on in hong kong, the u. S. Secretary of state says the territory no longer merits special status because china is stripping it of its autonomy. Very warm welcome to the program. In an hour, we may reach aew milestone in space travel because for the first time a commercial spacecraft is hoping to take humans into orbit. It is all if the weather permits. There has been a Tornado Warning in cape canaveral. Lets look at what is happening. This is the spacex crew dragon capsule and it is at the top of a huge rocket, falcon 9 made by spacex and also on board two nasa astronauts. They are hoping to join the crew of the International Space station. They are scheduled to take off from Kennedy Space center at 4 33 p. M. Local time. It has to hit that time. In one hour and just under 30 minutes. Nasa says the two astronauts who will take part in this are highly experienced test pilots. Here they are a short time ago suited up porting the dragon capsule. They are bob behnken and doug hurley. Ey will be the first astronauts to go from american soil since the end of the program in 2011. Hurley was the pilot on the last shuttle outing. Even the launchpad is historic. It is the launchpad 39a at the Kennedy Space center built in the 1960s and has hosted the saturn five moon rocket and all buttwo all but two of the apollo missions. Apollo 11, the first crewed flight to the moons surface. The weather is a k factor. It could still be canceled if there not a large enough window for the capsule to get into orbit. We will find out in 40 minutes if the launch will go ahead. Theres the former nasa Program Manager on why the weather is important. The vehicle has to get through the weather. You dont want to put a rocket aura spacecraft or a spacecraft through lightning with rain. Those were the biggest things, also wind. You dont want to much shear, the force on the rocket. You dont want to have shear forces that will disturb the rocket in any way. The added thing for this launch, if you have to do and abort, which you never want to do, you got to get the vehicle off, the spacecraft off the launch vehicle and down to the ocean. Now going through the clouds, no weather, you got to come down where there is no lightning also. You have got weather in both regions you have got to deal with. Kasia the weather is crucial. Jane obrien joins us from the launch site where we are waiting to see what happens. You have already had a Tornado Warning. Jane that was dramatic, a if launching a rocket from american soil was not bad enough. Everyone was told to take cover because the whole area was under a Tornado Warning which mns one was possible. That has passed. It is calm and wet, but there is another cell developing over orlando, 50 minutes from here. There are a lot of fingers being crossed in that this will go as planned. You have got a cop behind me. We are under the one hour 30 minutes mark. Things are looking good at the moment. The weathers i keep saying, as everyone is saying, will be the deciding factor. Kasia we talkbout needing to hit that specific time. It is crucial for this launch, otherwise they miss this window and could wait until saturday. Jane yeah, the weather is so important because it is not just about the launch site here the weather has to be clear all the way along the freight the flight trajectory of the rockets because if they have abort, they have to know it is safe to splash down. This capsule has to splash down. They have to make sure there is no danger if that happens on the atlantic path the roct will be taking. The other reason the window is so important, they are aiming at the International Space stati. It has to be exactly overhead or at an angle where they can reach it in one go. It is about a minute, which is incredible. There are so manynpredictable factors, so many variables the scientists have to take into account. It is extraordinarthey think they can do it at all. Kasia in 39 minutes we will know whether they are taking off. When it comes to talking about this being historic, a milestone, this is a commercial company taking astronauts into orbit. It is incredible. Jane the best way to sum this up is this launch is made in america. It is an American Made rocket with american astronauts, american s, the first time in almost a decade. America is back in the human spaceflight industry. That is why this is critical. The reason this could become a monday and event is the transport system to get the astronauts tohe International Space station, the reason that is important is because it leaves nasa to focus on the big things like getting back to the moon, which is necessary to get to mars. That is why everybody is putting so much store into this launch. Kasia thank you so much. Jane obrien at cape canaveral. The moment we hear anymore confirmation, we will bring that to you. If you are keen to watch from home, the International Space station can be seen using a telescope. This was taken by one of our producers using just a smart phone and a telescope. It is blurry, but it is better than i could do there and you can make up the out the solar panels and a destination for spacex, but only if e sky is clear. Much clearer than it has been in florida right now. We are keeping an eye on that. In other news Boris Johnson has been questned by senior mps over his governments haning of the outbreak. This is the First Time Since mr. Johnson becameder that he has appeared before the commons liaison committee. It comes amid growing revolt within his own party over the behavior of his advisor Dominic Cummings. Mr. Cummings drove from london to the northeast during the lockdown to isolate with his family in breach of the rules. Despite e outcry, the Prime MinisterDominic Cummings has refuseto resign and the Prime Minister is refusing to sack him. Here is what the Prime Minister said. I understand why people feel such indignation about the business, the whole pain of the lockdown. What they want now is for us to focus on them and their needs rather than a political ding dong about what one advisor may or may not have done. Kasia there was also this Heated Exchange with yvette cooper. Here is the problem. Reason you are not giving people your you are trying to protect Dominic Cummings. The reason you sent to say unclear things is because you are trying not to incriminate Dominic Cummings. You dont want to apologize for him. That means you are putting your political concerns ahead of clear Public Health messages to parents who have coronavirus. 40,000 people are dead we need you to get this right now. Can you tell us you have a choice between protecting Dominic Cummings and putting the National Interest first . Which will it be . My choice is that of the british people. I want to lay aside party and political and to put the National Interest first and to be clear with the public about what we want to do and how we want to take this country forward. Kasia one of the exchanges from Boris Johnson, giving testimony to the select committee. This whole Dominic Cummings saga has made headlines around the world. Look at the New York Times headline. Public outcry against Boris Johnson. And they say for more than two months the Prime Minister has floundered in his response to coronavirus, dragging his feet on imposing a lockdown, leaving Nursing Homes unprotected and muddling his message about how to reopen the economy. But it took the car trip by his closest advisor to turn the tide of Public Opinion against him. And in spain, this newspaper has the hide look headline brexit ideologist sparks worst political crisis. The article says if johnson thought he could scandal settle the scandal with firm response, he was wrong. The irish times asks when did mr. Johnson become so dependent on mr. Cummings . Was he always this weak . Just some of the International Papers looking at this. Lets get more from rob watson, monitoring that Testy Exchange earlier today. The Prime Minister wanting to move this on. Did he say enough to do that . Rob i guess the short answer is is depends on what your point of view is. For those who support the Prime Minister and want to move on, no doubt it would have been music to their ears. For those in his party and of course beyond in the country, you think he does not get it, that we are very angry, you cant have one rule for people who work in downing street and another for people who live and work in every other street in e country. I suspect it would have done little to assuage not just that anger but the amounts of mockery and joking of the governments expense which is always a difficult thing. And joking at the governments expense. Kasia the center of this controversy. Rob yes, absolutely. As you were suggesting in the headlines, it is not just here. At a countrys politicians are rather parochial as are journalists. People are not aware of how the u. K. s standing has been in freefall. I talked to business contacts from around the world and this is the narrative whether you think it is fair or not. There was the perception that the people that led the u. K. To brexit have led it to the highest death toll from the virus in europe. Whether that is fair or not, it has implications for the u. K. s economy and its clout and standing in the world. Kasia we want to discuss brexit a little further. The chief negotiator Michelle Bombardier has written a letter, saying the e. U. Is open to one or two year extension to the transition, but the u. K. Does not want an extension. What bearing does this have on the future relationship . Rob i think it is interesting. We have slightly forgot for exit these last forgot brexit these last few months. This message from david frost, the u. K. Is in bridging in visiting a much more distant relationship more than anyone realized during the referendum. That has all sorts of it means either the European Union is going to have to link inns to blink in some way and give concessions. The e. U. s view, if sovereignty is your issue, yeah, but you cant expect the same economic benefits. Whether the an e. U. Will blink or the u. K. , we will have to wait and see. The interesting thing, it has taken people by surprise here and around the world just how the current u. K. Government is seeing that more distant relationship where the sovereignty is prioritized. Kasia lets leave it there. Thank you so much. Stay with us here on outside source. As protests rumble on in hong kong, the u. S. Secretary of state says the territory no longer merits special status under american law because china is stripping it of its autonomy. Scotlands first minister Nicola Sturgeon has been answering questions in the scottish parliament. Yesterday she told us more 13 more people have died after testing positive for coronavirus. This brings the number of deaths to 2304. With symptoms, they should not have been discharged. I did not see every patient who was i cant stand here and give categorical assurance no patient was discharged with symptoms. The guidance that was in place was very clear. Similarly with isolation, the guidance that was issued to care homes in march made clear there should not be communal dining. People in care homes should be isolated in a way that has been hard for others but particularly for older People Living in care homes. Kaa welcome, you are watching outside source. A private company is preparing to take astronauts to the International Space station for the first time. Among the chief financial advisor, lost a key aspect of the trial on her extradition to the United States. Lets remind ourselv, she was arrested in canada late 2018. The u. S. Once had to stand trial on charges including fraud. She denies a wrongdoing as does huawei. The judgment today revolved around a concept called double criminality. That means the charges against her must be considered crimes against the u. S. And canada. In this case they were, the judge ruled. This has international ramifications. It could cause a rift at three in china and canada. A rift between china and canada. They Must Immediately release her and ensure her safe return to china so as not to continue damaging relations. Kasia remember china is believed to have arrested two canadians in retaliation for her arrest. Michael corbett the former diplomat and another are accused by china of espionage. Prime minister trudeau calls their continued detention arbitrary. For more on what happens next, zoe thomas. Explain the next process. This means the case is likely to stretch on for several more years in canada. Her legal team has put up several legal challenges to u. S. Authories extraditing her to canada the next thing we eect is whether Canadian Police violated her civil rights in the way they arrested her. She could again go free and be sent back to china. There are many levels of appeal and other legal challenges. We expect this will stretch out. It is going to continue to put pressu on relations between the u. S. And china and china and canada because of this trial stretching out. Kasia already we are seeing those relationships are pretty tense as it is. There is a lot of tension going on p we see in expanding going on. We expect tensions to increase utting pressure on huawei. She is not the chief Financial Officer but also the daughter of the companys founder. The u. S. Doesnt nt huawei involved in the creation of 5g networks ad the globe. It is putting pressure on trading partners cannot by from huawei if they can take them as a bad actor paint them as a bad actor than it says while we should not be involved huawei says those charges are completely false, that it is a safevider of 5g services and the u. S. Is making it about 5g, but it should not be about that. They say she should be free because she did not commit fraud and this is the u. S. Trying to use leverage to prevent the company from expanding and growing where u. S. Companies would like to be. Kasia thank you. The u. S. Secretary of state mike pompeo has suggested hong kong no longer qualifies for special u. S. Trade status because it has ceased to maintain a high degree of autonomy from Mainland China. He said i reported to Congress Hong kong is no longer autonomous from china given the facts on the ground. The United States standth the people of hong kong. Here is the former director of u. S. Economic counsel explaining why this would be significant. If the chinese try and over regulate the International Banks and companies in hong kong with the same laws they have in Mainland China, i would think you would see many of those banks and companies leave china and probably hong kong and go to places like singapore where it is more friendly. Kasia lets cross over live to speak to our correspondent from bbc chinese joining us from washington. When it cometo this decision, what does this mean for hong kong, which is concerned about the increasing power of the territory over the territory . Many describe this as Nuclear Options on china. This basically means hong kong will be cheated treated the same as Mainland China for trade and other purposes. From an economic point of view, this might be a loose situation for china, u. S. And hong kong. While hong kong is very important financial and commercial hub for china, it is where the money from east and west meet, and it is still a unique city for china. At the same time the u. S. Has business interests in this territory. They will feed the current as well. Most importantly hong kong will do this major blow of its economy. The Banking Sector and Financial Sector is its lifelines. This new declaration from the u. S. Will hinder that. At the same time the city has been hit very heavily by the monthlong protest last year and the economy has not been doing well and this is another negative case. Kasia china in bringing about the strict laws new there was a risk to this. Knew there was a risk to this. Is china happy to not have them as the economic hub . That is interesting. Days ago china also brought out in Nuclear Option on hong kong. They proposed a new security law that will likely hinder the remaining freedom in hong kong. Many people are asking whether the u. S. Move is pushing hong kong further away from the west, democracy and more towards beijing. It is expected beijing will react to washingtons move very strongly because china has long conceded Hong Kong Affairs as purely chinese domestic affairs. It would not like the u. S. Commenting or interfering in Hong Kong Affairs. Kasia we will have to leave it there. Before we end the program, lets look at images from italy. This is a roman mosaic floor. It will be it was concealed under a vineyard. After decades of searching, experts in verona honor this well preserved tiles which were buried under tons of earth. They first found a evidence of a roman villa there a century ago. Narrator funding for this presentation of this program is provided by. Language specialists teaching spanish, french and more. Out business has been people and their financial well being. That mission gives us purpose and a way forward. Today and always. The freeman foundation. By judy and Peter Blum Kovler foundation; pursuing solutions for americas neglected needs. 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