the story starts right now. martha: thanks, john and sandra. good afternoon. i m martha maccallum. there s a lot at stake and going on behind chosed doors at this hour. we have high level meetings among members of the israeli government, possibly deciding if there is a deal that they can pass in their government to free some of the faces and the people behind them that you re seeing right now on your screen. about 50 hostages, women and children, in this first group is what is being considered right now. would be an exchange for a multiday pause in fighting and also for the release of about 150 palestinian prisoners to include women and some under 18 as well. so president biden made a comment on this not that long ago saying we re now very close. you can see these loved ones of hostages gathering in tel aviv. looking at their pictures, lighting candles, bring alma back says that poster. all of these families distraught for over a month now. the president was asked about t
Ido i do geta i do get a lot of abuse. What do you normally do when you hang out together . This. We sit around, he abuses me. David baddiel will tell us about life with his father whose rare form of dementia makes him prone to extreme outbursts of swearing and sexual inappropriateness. Really keen to hear your experiences of caring for a relative with dementia. Hello. Welcome to the programme. Were live until 11 this morning. Do get in touch on all the stories were talking about this morning. Use the hashtag victorialive. And if you text, you will be charged at the Standard Network rate. Our top story today. Council tax rises are planned by nearly all of englands local authorities in the coming year, but the organisation that represents them is warning that deep cuts to services will still be needed. The local Government Association says social Care Services for the elderly and disabled are at Breaking Point and will swallow up any extra money raised. Heres our social Affairs Correspo
there. it s a very repressive country right now. but i think behind the scenes that he has real trouble. phil mattingly, jill dougherty, i appreciate it. thank you. a closer look now what it s like on the ground in ukraine. more on that from cnn s sam kylie. reporter: carried on a gun ship, escorted by another russia s defense minister we re told is visiting russian troops in ukraine s zaporizhzhia province. these higher wards reflect higher appreciation for your military work he says handing out medals. across the russian river the director of the children s hospital isn t impressed by his performance. he says, they re not brave hiding in that bank between houses. they shoot at us. what do you think when you see
victory? i wonder about that because if you look at what s happening behind the scenes, i think there is an enormous amount of chaos. just look, the wagner group, you talked about that. they are now arresting scientists who have been developing weapons. it is massive repression on a really stalinist scale. i think what that says is that putin, yes, he s in charge. but there is a lot of ferment coming up from the bottom that you pick up here and there. it s a very repressive country right now. but i think behind the scenes, he has real trouble. phil mattingly, jill dougherty, appreciate it. thank you. more on ukraine from cnn s sam kylie. reporter: carried on a gun ship, escorted by another, russia s defense minister, we re told, is visiting russian troops in ukraine s zaporizhzhia province. these high rewards reflect high