Transcripts For BBCNEWS BBC Newsroom Live 20171204 : compare

beyond its best—before date. also coming up, a day to forget for england's ashes side. australia build on their massive first innings total after bowling england out for 227. and facebook is opening a new office in london today, creating 800 jobs. good morning, it is monday the 4th of december and i am ben brown, welcome to bbc newsroom live. britain and the european union appear close to reaching a deal that will clear the way for the second phase of brexit talks. eu sources said the two sides were "nearing solutions", ahead of theresa may's meeting with the european commission president, jean—claude juncker, in brussels this afternoon. progress has been made on what happens to eu citizens currently living in the uk, as well as uk citizens living in the european union. and there also appears to be agreement over how much the uk pays the eu, in what has become known as the brexit divorce bill. the last key sticking point however is what to do about the irish border. negotiations on that were held by diplomats overnight. it still isn't clear if a deal has been done. it's 310 miles long and has 200 public roads along it, which makes it a complex issue given the government's plans to leave the customs union and the single market. the government in dublin once a written commitment there will be no new border controls and that is something the irish cabinet has been meeting this morning to discuss. speaking just before he boarded his flight speaking just before he boarded his flight to brussels, the brexit secretary david davis said that eve ryo ne secretary david davis said that everyone wants talks to move on to trade. we have but seven months of work, both sides, into getting to this point and we are hoping that jean—claude juncker today will give sufficient progress we can move onto trade talks. the decision, of course, won't be taken until the 15th of december but that is what we are hoping for because trade talks are hoping for because trade talks are of enormous importance to the united kingdom and europe. donald tuskis united kingdom and europe. donald tusk is very clear this is not a staging post but a firm deadline to nail down sufficient progress on talks. this it? i think it is an important day. the council can a lwa ys important day. the council can always make up its own mind on the 15th but it is an important day, they will take a lot of guidance from the commission and everybody understands that the decision to move on to trade talks is vital. it is vital to everybody, it is of huge value to the 27 members and ourselves. the pm is once again having to get involved. are you struggling to get the job done? the first negotiator in this progress, from the beginning, has been the prime minister. she laid out the para meters prime minister. she laid out the parameters in high lancaster house speech, she reset the negotiations at the florence speech. that is all donein at the florence speech. that is all done in conjunction, together. that is the brexit secretary. well, the irish government says the border issue remains unresolved. its foreign affairs minister has insisted that ireland needs written assurance from the uk that there would be no hardening of the border post—brexit. this is where i think the government have had a difference of opinion. the british government essentially wa nts to the british government essentially wants to deal with all of this in phase two and we are saying we need more reassurance before we can move on to phase two, that the parameters are on to phase two, that the parameters a re clear on to phase two, that the parameters are clear within which we can solve theseissues are clear within which we can solve these issues credibly. i'lljust finish this point, what we are asking is the same questions that the house of commons brexit committee are also asking, so i mean, if ever there was proof that the irish government is not being unreasonable here, the same questions are being asked by a majority of mps in westminster as we are asking ourselves. let's head over to brussels. christian frazier is there with all of that. just to underline how crucial this moment is, we are hearing the council president donald tusk cancelling a trip to the middle east because he believes this week really is so critical. it is interesting, all sides have said it is important today. downing street are saying it is a staging post, the european commission saying it really is crunch point at eight months of negotiation. theresa may can ill afford going into the end of the year without moving negotiation onto the second phase. it is broadly positive, the mood music ear. jean—claude juncker said he was still looking for personal assurances and concrete measures from the prime minister and is still wa ry from the prime minister and is still wary of the domestic politics back in the uk but broadly, they think they are coming towards at least a form of words that will be to the satisfaction of the eu leaders when they meet on the 14th of december. jackie davies is a long—time commentator here in brussels and has been covering eu politics for 25 yea rs, been covering eu politics for 25 years, a long time. are you surprised by how everyone is picking of the occasion? frankly, a couple of the occasion? frankly, a couple of weeks ago, it looked like it wasn't possible, they were too far apart and the eu was very much sticking to its guns. you give us sufficient progress we don't move. the fact that there seems to be a dramatic change in the uk position, the offer on the money and more concessions in relations to citizens' right and the determination to solve the northern ireland question, that the mood has changed, the uk has recognised what it needs to do if it is to move on. that has really changed the move and i think it is as much surprise as genuine optimism. when you mean solving the irish issue, we are not going to get that today, we are going to get that today, we are going to get a form of work, what, that guarantees there will be no border and guarantees there will be assurances on the good friday agreement? no, the point about today is to be broadly on the right place, the right money on citizens rights and northern ireland and frantic work over the weekend to make sure we are broadly in the right place and the irish government, who have been given an effective veto over the stalks, are able to say we move ahead. but there is still a week to go before the crucial eu summit and what theresa may needs to avoid some sort of that disaster and of the commission president came out and said he could not recommend moving forward to phase two, that would be disaster. if there are a few sticking point is to be ironed out, the eu is famous for going to the 11th hour, there is still an awful lot of time if you do eu time, which isa lot of time if you do eu time, which is a slightly parallel universe to normal time, to sort those things out. the signal has to be right from today. what is a sequencing in terms of what happened today? the parliament team went in ahead of the lunch, which start in about two hours' time, with jean—claude juncker. donald tusk cancelling meetings in the middle east. what do they hope to get today and how will it affect the next two weeks? what they need to get is a signal and hopefully a joint statement from both sides saying, yes, we are broadly in the right place to move forward and we will be able to recommend to the summit, from the eu side to the other 27 leaders, that we move forward. remember, it is their decision, not the commission's decision but they will probably go along with whatever the commission says. the parliament is very important because at the end of the day, the parliament has to approve whatever deal is done with the uk. you ignore them at their peril and they have been talking very tough, so they have been talking very tough, so before and after this meeting, consultations with the parliament, consultations with the parliament, consultations with the parliament, consultations with other member states, so that what comes out of here is then translated in theory into that deal at the december summit. it is interesting how theresa may is selling the financial settlement, she is saying, at home, this is a proviso on is smoothing to this is a proviso on is smoothing to this future relationship, the negotiation, it is quid pro quo. the european side are saying that is not how it works, it is a divorce settlement, this eu living up to the commitments you have already made. exactly, they are saying this is the bill, if you like, for past commitments, not upfront payment for the trade deal you want. but crucially, we won't talk about the trade deal until we have done the divorce, that is the way it works andl divorce, that is the way it works and i think theresa may has to be very careful because she is under a lot of pressure at home to tie various things, to say this is my offer on the money but only if you give us x, y and z. the eu will be very firm in saying, no, this, as you say, is about the past but then we talk about the future, but you are not buying anything at this point. that language is very important and it depends how much pressure the prime minister is under at home to tie the two things together. who would be theresa may, between a rock and a hard place? thank you very much for the moment. so it is all about the language. the lunch will take place in around two hours and we will be here throughout the afternoon to bring you all of the afternoon to bring you all of the developments. christian, many thanks indeed. just to bring you the latest from the european parliament's brexit latest from the european pa rliament‘s brexit spokesman, latest from the european parliament's brexit spokesman, guy verhofstadt, who was in charge of the whole brexit negotiations as far as the parliament in the eu is concerned, he is saying that no brexit deal has been achieved yet and he sees the chances at 50—50 of and he sees the chances at 50—50 of a brexit deal going ahead. that is guy verhofstadt of the eu parliament saying no brexit deal yet and seeing the chances of that as 50—50. well, one of the possible impediments to the deal, as we have been hearing, is the irish border issue, the irish cabinet meeting this morning to discuss whether enough progress has been made of that issue on the border, so we go to chris page, who is in belfast and, chris, what is needed here is not actually a deal, it is justly assurances for the irish government, isn't it? but as we are hearing, they do effectively have a veto. that is right, on friday, donald tusk, who theresa may will meet later today, travelled to dublin and really couldn't have given a permit endorsement of the irish government's position on the border. he said that if the uk offer on the border was an acceptable to ireland, then the irish prime minister leo varadkar, it would also be unacceptable to the eu, so effectively leo varadkar has a veto over whether the talks progress to the second phase is the uk would like. today, he has called a special meeting of his cabinet, it met at dublin at about nine o'clock this morning. they don't usually meet on monday but they did today to discuss how the brexit negotiations were going. they did not discuss a final d raft going. they did not discuss a final draft text because negotiators in brussels have not got to that stage, so it was just an update rather than an approval or not of an agreement which then could unlock the door to the brexit negotiations moving on, to discussing trade. the irish cabinet recognising it will have to come when the trade deal is on the table but they want a written commitment that no matter how those trade discussions go, there will be no border controls in ireland. pretty much everyone agreeing there should be no border controls, no ha rd should be no border controls, no hard border, but the question is how to achieve that. it is a real intellectual conundrum long—term, how that can be done. yes, it is a very difficult circle to square. it is mainly about customs and the movement of goods on the big question and this is where the disagreement comes between britain and ireland, how do you avoid border controls when you essentially having the uk going outside of the european customs union with its negotiations in ireland remaining within? the irish ideas basically you have the same rules for the republic of ireland and northern ireland but the british government has firmly ruled out any new arrangement that would result in any trade barriers between northern ireland and the rest of the uk, so that gives you an idea how difficult it is to resolve. chris page, many thanks, in belfast. and the view from westminster and our assistant political editor norman smith is there. we were hearing the pressure is on theresa may, well, the dup, of course, one source of pressure on the whole irish border question but also brexiteers, we heard them over the weekend saying don't give too much away too soon. huge pressures but it is worth stressing, this is not the deal, remember, this is a prelude to getting that crucial trade deal and all the british government have to show is sufficient progress has been made, so they don't have to have a blueprint to resolve the northern ireland border issue. what they have got to do is try and allay the concerns of the government in dublin while not alarming unionist opinion in northern ireland and, indeed, in the conservative party, so a lot of it is about messaging, it is about language, it is not about sort of ha rd language, it is not about sort of hard and fixed proposals. those can be finessed down the line, it is about trying to give both sides confidence that they can move forward , confidence that they can move forward, so it is a slightly lower bar than forward, so it is a slightly lower barthan mrs mahar forward, so it is a slightly lower bar than mrs mahar is to get over and —— that theresa may has to get over and they brought themselves a little bit of leeway because overnight, downing street said it is an important day but it is just a staging post. i read from that that if they don't manage to do everything today, don't panic, there are still ten days or so to go until that crucial december summit, so they still have a bit of time to keep passing words here, there and everywhere to see if they can pull things together. and bear in mind, when you are talking about eu negotiators, foreign office negotiators, foreign office negotiators, you have some of the best legal minds in town and they will, i think, best legal minds in town and they will, ithink, have best legal minds in town and they will, i think, have some skill at finding a formulation of words which can satisfy both sides. and the mood music in brussels seemed to be one of cautious optimism. did it all change, really, when theresa may effectively made that improved offer for the brexit bill, 40— 50 billion euros, whatever it is? i think it is a slightly longer process than that, i think it has been, to some extent, the rhetoric of brexit has collided with the reality of negotiations and we are seeing that now, we have seen for many months with the initial florence speech and the offer of 20 billion and then the time—limited transition period and then the sort of smoke signals suggesting, well, we we re of smoke signals suggesting, well, we were still have pretty much the same sort of arrangements for a couple of years with european court ofjustice couple of years with european court of justice and couple of years with european court ofjustice and then, as you say, last week we had the significant increase in offer and perhaps as important as the lack of a volcano going off here at westminster, there was not fear and damnation from brexiteers about the possibility we could potentially be spending up to 50 billion euros. in fact, some of them were saying what a jolly good deal. that gave theresa may leeway, if you like, to put that money on the table but i think it has been a gradual process where theresa may has had to take the party and the brexiteers along with that in a series of incremental concessions. norman, for the moment, thank you very much indeed. let's bring you the latest headlines, it has just gone 1115 a:m.. britain and the european union do seem to be close to reaching a deal which would clear the way for the second phase of brexit talks, but progress is still needed on the irish border issue. 700,000 children and pensioners in the uk have fallen into relative poverty over the last four years, according to a new report. the metropolitan police commissioner cressida dick condemns former officers who made public comments about pornography found on a computer in damian green's parliamentary office. in sport, still a long way to go but a positive spell for england's bowlers as they take four quick wickets at the start of australia's second innings. at the close of play, australia 53—4, a lead of 268 runs. david silva gives manchester city a record equalling 13th premier league win ina record equalling 13th premier league win in a row with a late goal against west ham. and double 0lympic against west ham. and double olympic champion against west ham. and double 0lympic championjade jones has won her second successive world tae kwon do grand prix title and will end the year as world number one. i will have more on those stories about 15 minutes. 700,000 children and pensioners in the uk have fallen into relative poverty over the past four years, according to a new report. thejoseph rowntree foundation says it's the first sustained rise affecting these age groups for 20 years. the think tank warns decades of progress are in danger of unravelling, and has called on the government to take action. 0ur social affairs correspondent michael buchanan has more. for flo singleton, this drop—in centre has many benefits. she can use its computers to keep up with herfamily. she can meet friends. and, by being here, the 84—year—old does not have to spend money heating her own home. if you go out, you don't have to have your heating on, do you? trouble is, once it's dark, in the evenings now, and cold, you need to put the heating on, don't you? today's report says that successful projects to tackle poverty since 2013 are under threat. the report says, since 2013, an extra 300,000 pensioners and an additional 400,000 children are now living in poverty. in total, 1a million people in the uk are in poverty. what our report is now showing is that we're at a significant turning point. two years of sustained increases in the number of children and pensioners in poverty is a real red flag to government that they really have to do something now. researchers say the government should end the freeze on benefits, describing it as the biggest single change that would reduce poverty. but ministers say they are already spending tens of billions of pounds helping those in need, and that the national minimum wage has given low—earning households a significant pay rise. michael buchanan, bbc news. just another line on the brexit talks today, really adding to the mood of optimism we have been hearing about from brussels that there will be a deal paving a way to there will be a deal paving a way to the opening of trade talks on brexit. this is a spokesman for the eu parliament now saying that the chances of a deal are very good and that they are just a few words away from an agreement, just a few words are missing from a deal, that is according to the spokesman for the eu parliament. so that, as i say, just adding to the optimistic mood music in brussels. we will bring you much more on that as it comes into us. the metropolitan police commissioner cressida dick has said that former officers were wrong to speak to the bbc about pornography they say was found on a computer in damian green's parliamentary office. speaking on the vanessa feltz show on bbc radio london, the scotland yard chief condemned what they had done. and she said there would be a review of whether any offences had been committed. let's get more on this from danny shaw. so an important intervention from cressida dick, britain's most senior police officer. what was she saying? she was coming under pressure at the weekend to speak out about this and just rewind a little bit, this follows a sunday times article in which a statement from bob quick emerged, which hejulie confirmed, in which he said pornography was allegedly found on damian green's were computer back in 2008 and then, last week, neil lewis, a detective who said that he found the pornography on the work computer, did an interview with the bbc. he did that interview because he said he had contacted the cabinet 0ffice enquiries looking into mr green's conduct but had heard nothing back from the cabinet office and he was fearful that there would be some kind of cover—up or the situation would not be dealt with properly. so those were the circumstances which led to these individuals speaking out, but their actions have been condemned because of course they have a duty of confidentiality as former police officers with information they received as part of an inquiry and cressida dick has spoken and here is what she said earlier. this is a case from nine years ago. all police office rs case from nine years ago. all police officers know very well that they have a duty of confidentiality, a duty to protect personal information. that duty, in my view, clearly endures after you leave the service and so it is my view that what they have done, based on my understanding of what they are saying, what they have done is wrong andl saying, what they have done is wrong and i condemn it. we are reviewing what they appear to have done. in my professional standards department, to see if any offences have been committed. police officers, cross personal and sensitive information every day, most of them several times a day. they know full well it is their duty to protect that information and it is, for me, extremely important that the public know that the vast majority of office rs know that the vast majority of officers protect private information properly and all the time. so cressida dick they're pretty strong, saying what they did was wrong, condemning it. is there any possibility these officers will face any sort of action for what they have said? it is difficult to see how they can face misconduct proceedings because they have both left the metropolitan police, bob quick and neil lewis, but there is the possibility potentially a prosecution under the data protection act in terms of not safeguarding confidential information. however, there is, under that legislation, a public interest defence and so if either of the men could argue that they were acting in the public interest, the offence would be made out. the data protection act, the maximum sentence isa protection act, the maximum sentence is a fine or something like that. 0ther is a fine or something like that. other possible offences, whether it is misconduct under the official secrets act, i think they'll probably unlikely at this stage but we are in the very early stages, the metropolitan police is just reviewing the circumstances around it and they haven't launched a formal investigation yet. danny shaw, thank you very much. let's look at some of today's other developing stories. south korea and the united states have launched large scale joint aerial drills, a week after north korea said it had tested its most advanced missile. the annual us—south korean drill, called vigilant ace, will run until friday, with six f—22 raptor stealth fighters to be deployed among the more than 230 aircraft taking part. the exercises have been condemned as a provocation by north korea. 0ur correspondent in the south korean capital seoul, paul adams, gave us more details of the exercise. the sheer volume of aircraft involved, 230, we understand, and more importantly, perhaps, the sheer sophistication of what the americans are sending, including some of their most highly aircraft, the f—35 and the f-35, most highly aircraft, the f—35 and the f—35, in large numbers, the back of than they have sent to this part of than they have sent to this part of the world before, suggest that they want this to send a strong message. they are saying this is all about making sure that the south korean and american military is can operate together in a fluent and sea mless operate together in a fluent and seamless way and they are not commenting on reports that the drills, which are going to last for days, willing cute simulated attacks on north korean targets —— will include. that is being quite widely reported here and i don't suppose, perhaps, the pentagon mines particularly if that is the message that this drill sends. police in malta have arrested eight maltese nationals in connection with the car bomb murder of blogger daphne ca ruana galizia. prime ministerjoseph muscat told reporters that police operations were underway in the town of marsa, and the bugibba and zebbug areas. caruana galizia was killed close to her home on 16th october in an attack which shocked the country. the 53—year—old was known for her blog accusing top politicians of corruption. facebook says it's creating 800 newjobs in the uk, as it opens a new office in central london. it'll become the firm's biggest engineering hub outside of the united states. an estimated 2,300 people will be employed by the social media company in the uk by the end of next year. a co—operative group is to start selling food beyond its best—before date. 125 shops in east anglia will sell tinned goods and dried food such as pasta, crisps and rice for a flat rate of 10p. it's part of a drive to reduce the seven—million tons of food thrown away in the uk each year. as new driving tests come into force to better reflect modern roads, examiners have begun a 48—hour strike. the new tests will see an end to manoeuvres such as the three—point turn, but learners will now have follow directions from a sat—nav. the public and commercial services union are protesting against the changes, which they say will see examiners work longer for no extra pay. the driver and vehicle standards agency says the union is linking the changes to a long—standing contractual dispute. the strike action has never had anything to do with the driving test. sadly, it's a cynical attempt by the pcs to gain support for their cause. most examiners are not in the union and those that are working today will take out a number of tests a nd today will take out a number of tests and we expect disruption to be minimal. environment ministers from about a hundred countries are meeting in the kenyan capital, nairobi, to try to finalise a global declaration to combat pollution. the un says nine million people died in 2015 because of polluted air, land or water — with half of those deaths occurring in china and india. a derelict sports stadium in the american state of michigan is still standing, despite efforts to flatten it. crowds gathered to watch the silverdome in detroit knocked down. but, as we can see here, despite several blasts, the building remained standing proud. fans of the detroit lions, the team that called the arena home until 2001, joked on social media that it was not the first time they'd left the parking lot feeling disappointed. for a full summary of the news you can go to our website. there was a treat for stargazers in our skies last night — the appearance of what's called a super—moon. the moon was at one of its closest points to earth, looking bigger and brighter than usual. it's the first super—moon since november of last year. but if you missed it, don't worry. there will be two more before the end of january. just like buses. croquet, those are the latest news stories, coming up to 1130, -- 11:30 the latest news stories, coming up to 1130, —— 11:30 a:m., let's get a look at the weather with simon. we had some pretty good views of the supermen last night, loads of photos sent to us from weather watchers. now, the weather for the start of this week is looking pretty boring, really. monday and tuesday, it is going to remain quite cloudy and there is not a great deal of change in the weather but as we go through into the middle part of this week, things will get interesting, wet and windy weather and by the end of the week, it is going to turn much, much colder. snow and ice returning to the forecast. but for the here and now, lots of cloud. the best sunshine towards eastern areas of england, the east of scotland. a few spots of rain in western areas where you have thicker cloud but pretty mild out there, maximum temperature is about eight or 9 degrees, in the north, six — ten further south. not much change this evening, lots of cloud and frost free to take this into tuesday morning and tuesday itself, pretty cloudy skies the most of the day. a few breaks to give us brighter spells but rain moving its way into the far north of scotland and top temperatures similar to today. this is bbc news. our latest headlines: theresa may will meet the eu presidentjean—claude juncker later, for talks that could determine whether the brexit negotiations move on to trade. the decision to trade talks is why tell. vital to everybody. a huge value to the 27 members and to ourselves. one in five people in the uk now lives in poverty, according to a report by thejoseph rowntree foundation. the charity says the number of children and pensioners living in households with low incomes is increasing. the metropolitan police commissioner, cressida dick, has accused two former senior officers of breaching their code of conduct by making public allegations about the first secretary of state, damian green. the east of england co—0p is to start selling food that's past its best—before date for 10p — to try to reduce waste. dried food and tinned products will be included. now the sport. more misery for england down under? there is a slight glimmer of hope. day three of the second ashes test started horribly for england but finished rather better. england lost a succession of quick wickets this morning and there were some moments of brilliance from australia — moeen ali was caught and bowled by nathan lyon. and mitchell starc removed jonny bairstow in the same way, reacting incredibly quickly here. england all out and over 200 runs behind the aussies. but they made the best possible start with the ball. james anderson striking early to remove cameron bancroft. the tourists took four wickets in a busy night session, including the valuable one of captain steve smith. australia finishing the day 53 forfour, their lead 268. still a long way back for england, though. england manager gareth southgate has been told his job is safe, even if his side loses every game at next year's world cup in russia. southgate signed a four—year deal 12 months ago and the fa say he'll be in charge for the "next few tournaments". they say they have a long—term plan and they're already seeing results, with world cup successes for the under—17 and under—20 sides. manchester city are eight points clear at the top of the premier league, thanks to a record—equalling 13th win in a row. their visitors west ham put up a realfight, though — angelo 0gbonna firing them ahead. but after city levelled, david silva put away the winner seven minutes from time. in the second half, i thought we we re in the second half, i thought we were going to score. it shows they're going to do it, they can do it. i've been pleased with them at training. very good and i have no complaints. i want us to play better, but hopefully we can take some positives. there was controversy on the south coast, where bournemouth defender adam smith claimed refereejon moss told him after the match he was wrong to book him for diving instead of awarding a penalty against southampton. the premier league dispute this. the match ended in a 1—1 draw and smith will miss the next game for his fifth yellow card of the season. in the scottish premiership, rangers moved into second place, above aberdeen on goal difference, after beating them 2—1 at pittodrie. josh windass with the winning goal. and non—league woking will be in the hat for this evening's fa cup third round draw. a late equaliser from joe ward earned them a replay with peterborough united of league one last night. double olympic champion jade jones said it felt "amazing to finish on a high", after winning her second successive world taekwondo grand prix final title. she beat marta calvo—gomez of spain in a one—sided contest in ivory coast and she'll end the year as world number one. it completes an impressive return to form forjones, who took bronze at the world championships injune following a post—0lympic break. ronnie 0'sullivan said his game had started to feel good again, after breezing into the third round of snooker‘s uk championship in york. he's looking to equal steve davis's record of six uk titles and he had no trouble against michael georgiou, winning 6—1. live coverage starts at 1pm on bbc two. at 1pm on bbc two. robert kubica's will continue his attempt to make a remarkable return to formula one this week. after testing for williams in abu dhabi he'll work on their simulator to try to prove he can overcome the injuries he suffered in a rally crash. the pole hasn't raced in f1 for seven years, but is sounding quietly confident. we should agree on the end because i have shown that although i have limitations fitness wise, i'm ready andi limitations fitness wise, i'm ready and i have never been in such a good shape as i am now. of course, i have to work harder because i have limitations. i have to prepare better and in different ways. my body and mental strength, but that's pa rt body and mental strength, but that's part of thejob. body and mental strength, but that's part of the job. let's see. that's all the sport for now. i'll have more for you in the next hour. thank you. see you later. 700,000 children and pensioners in the uk have fallen into relative poverty over the past four years, according to a new report. thejoseph rowntree foundation says it's the first sustained rise affecting these age groups for 20 years. the thinktank warns decades of progress are in danger of unravelling, and has called on the government to take action. i'm nowjoined by thejoseph rowntree foundation's chief executive, campbell robb. thank you for being with us. dramatic figures. can you explain them to others? what we are seeing isa them to others? what we are seeing is a real turning point in this country in the fight against poverty. this sustained rise is because wages are not keeping up, benefits are frozen and costs are going up. putting that altogether, we see this rise for children and pensioners in poverty for the first time in 20 years. and yet we are seeing record employment levels? this is a thing which is really stark. we have to understand that work no longer pays the way we want it to. many families are struggling and not getting what they need. wages are stagnant, there are benefits freezes, that's why we see these changes. we need to see action to unfreeze benefits and ensure that wages are enough. the government say that the number of people in absolute poverty since 2010 has fallen by half a million and pensioner poverty is that lowest recorded levels. pensioners on lower incomes are not getting what they need to help them along. housing costs are rising. the government chose last week to continue the freeze on benefits. the institute for fiscal studies say we will see a significant rise in child poverty in the coming years. the government needs to take this seriously and think about what is happening to people across the country. this is very real for many people. these figures show that we have to make sure that work works. we need genuinely affordable housing built across the country. benefits unfrozen. real investment in skills for people who work in care, hospitality and retail. you say the government have to take this seriously. they would say that they are. they say they are spending an extra 11.2 billion on pensioners, keepers and disabled people next year. this is at a time of difficult economic times. the government have real choices to make in their budget. they chose to put billions into a budget. they chose to put billions intoa stamp budget. they chose to put billions into a stamp duty cut which will help me generally better. 0ur figures show that we are at a turning point. these figures show clearly people are following more into poverty than they have for the first time in 20 years. we want to work with the government to solve this problem. theresa may made it clear as prime minister she wanted to tackle burning injustices. but we really need to see action. the social mobility representative resigned this weekend because they didn't think things were going forward. 0urfigures indicate that things are actually going backwards, so that is a real challenge. thank you very much forjoining us. government funding for a flagship british aid project to support civilian police in syria has been suspended. it's after whistle—blowers told the bbc‘s panorama programme that some of the money was ending up in the hands of extremists. the foreign office says it's investigating the allegations, as panorama's jane corbin explains. britain is one of six countries that funds the free syrian police, set up to bring security to opposition—held areas. for eight months, british aid money meant to pay for officers' salaries was handed over by the police to an extremist group, nour al—din al—zenki. translation: zenki used to get a percentage from the salaries of the free police members. it was just about taking a percentage in return for the services, and to create a sort of equilibrium between the police and the fighters. the police we fund also provide support for zenki's barbaric justice system, responsible for torture and summary killings. the company which runs the aid project, adam smith international, or asi, told us the government was aware of cash going to zenki, and asi have strict guidelines in place to ensure detainees are treated fairly and plainly. the company which runs the aid project, adam smith international, or asi, told us the government was aware of cash going to zenki, and asi have strict guidelines in place to ensure detainees are treated fairly and plainly. the foreign office has suspended funding while it investigates panorama's allegations. a spanish supreme courtjudge has released on bail 64 catalan ministers who were held over their pa rt ministers who were held over their part in illegally trying to break the region away from spain. they face charges of rebellion against the state. the eight had campaign further release ahead of regional elections. all eight ministers have been imprisoned for more than a month. today, they have appealed to thejudge to say month. today, they have appealed to the judge to say they should be to campaign from tomorrow as part of the catalan elections because they are held on remand in custody. they have not been charged. the crane they could be charged with include sedition or rebellion against the state, up to 30 years in prison. the judge has said that six of those ministers can be released so long as they pay bail of $100,000. in the case of two of the ministers, they won't be released. this is the former vice president and the former interior minister. thejudge former vice president and the former interior minister. the judge said they were responsible for not doing enough to prevent alleged violence on 20 september. this was just before the referendum took place. spanish police were trying to get documents to stop the referendum going ahead. the allegation is that for19 going ahead. the allegation is that for 19 hours there was violence on the streets and the spanish police we re the streets and the spanish police were stuck inside trying to get documents. that is part of the reason why these ministers will remain in prison. i've spoken in the past few days to some of the relatives of other independence relatives. they say they are distressed about the decision. the former catalan president who fled to belgium has appeared this morning with four other ministers. they have given their defence ruling today. elections are in three weeks. some of those ministers will be out campaigning tomorrow. the spanish government is worried about this creating almost a marked effect. it is neck and neck in the polls at the moment. very close. six of these ministers are likely to leave prison today. in a moment a summary of the business news this hour, but first the headlines on bbc newsroom live: britain and the eu appear close to reaching a deal that would clear the way for the second phase of brexit talks — but progress is still need on the irish border issue. 700,000 children and pensioners in the uk have fallen into relative poverty over the past four years, according to a new report. the metropolitan police commissioner, cressida dick, condemns former officers who made public comments about pornography found on a computer in damian green's parliamentary office. i'm ben thompson. in the business news... toys r us will close at least 26 stores in the uk, starting in spring next year. the move puts 800 jobs at risk. it says stores will remain open and trade as usual during the christmas and new year period but wants to focus on smaller " i ntera ctive stores" and online shopping. the co—op is to become the first major retailer to sell food beyond its best before date. 125 shops in east anglia will sell dried and tinned products at a flat rate, to reduce food waste. facebook is opening its new british headquarters and it says it will eventually hire 800 more people to work there, which will bring the number of facebook staff in the uk to 2,300. the office will be facebook‘s biggest engineering hub outside the us, and opens during its tenth year in the uk. would you buy food after its expiry date? and what if it was only ten pence? that's what one uk supermarket chain is now offering — becoming the first major retailer to sell products that have passed the "best before" date. shoppers at the east of england co—op's 125 food stores — across norfolk, suffolk, essex and cambridgeshire — can pick up food items that have exceeded their "best before" dates exceeded their "best before" dates forjust ten pence each. the company — which is separate to the co—0perative group — says the move could save two tonnes of food waste a year — the equivalent to 40,000 chocolate bars or 12,000 avocados. i am joined by dr richard swannell, development director at wrap. first of all, could you explain to us the difference between used by an best before? good morning. this is really important. used by is about food safety. you can eat food up to the end of the day on the use by date and then you can freeze it following manufacturers instructions. that is critical. best therefore is what it says, it is best before and fine afterwords. but if you want to get the product at its best, that is what the date is they are, to give you guidance. the co—op have said they will sell these items for 10p. i assume you would welcome this move? this highlights in all of our minds that it is perfectly fine to eat food after the best before date. 0ur perfectly fine to eat food after the best before date. our research shows that about 350,000 tonnes a year is thrown away because of confusion about date labels in our homes. it costs us a staggering £1 billion per year. why are we throwing so much away? there are number of reasons. default into two broad categories. 0ne default into two broad categories. one is in essence we buy food and don't use it in time, goes off, the other is that we cooked too much and don't have the confidence to use the leftovers at the end. it is quite a complex thing. date labels as part of it. for example, getting more confident in using leftovers is another way to save money. the average family can save about £700 per year simply by making better use of the food that they are buying. this affects 125 stores. would you like to see the national supermarkets do something similar? national supermarkets are already really engaged in helping us try to reduce food waste through a volume the agreement which focused is on reducing food waste. let's see how this trial goes, what impact it has, and perhaps review it after that. what you are already seeing is a significant increase in redistribution, food going to those in need. that is very much welcome. so let's see how this goes. it's a very interesting trial. thank you very interesting trial. thank you very much forjoining us. research by the bbc suggests that the number of schoolchildren doing part—time work has fallen by a fifth in the last five years. research by the bbc suggests that the number of schoolchildren doing part—time work has fallen by a fifth in the last five years. getting a job over the age of 16 is relatively straightforward, but if you want to work below 16 but if you want to work below 16 it's a bit trickier — your employer has to get a special licence from the council. and fewer under 16s are doing it.... we've been doing some research into this at the bbc business unit — and according to figures obtained following an f0| request to local councils across the uk who licence under—age workers there's been a 20% decrease in the number of licences given out between 2012 and 2016. a quick look at the markets. the pound is down slightly against the euro. across europe, there is some optimism. a word on the united states. the corporate tax rate will be taken to 20 or 22%. it is not the 1596 be taken to 20 or 22%. it is not the 15% tres at —— president trump had promised, but it is expected to give business a boost in the us. that's all the business news. last month's vote to legalise same—sex marriage in australia came after a long and often fractious campaign. now, the issue has gone to parliament where mp's are debating the legislation. and then something rather unexpected happened. tim wilson — a liberal party mp — was on the floor making a speech on the bill. his partner of nine years, ryan bolger, was sitting listening in the public gallery. and then mr wilson went off—script a little. so there is only one thing left to do. ryan, will you marry me? tim wilson has been talking to my colleague victoria derbyshire, he started by confiding that he was pretty confident that ryan would say yes. i was pretty optimistic ryan would say yes. it was an extraordinary day for him as well. i didn't realise we would be the first couple to do this, but we had been debating this issue for an awfully long time. our relationship has been at the centre of it. it was ultimately the only way i thought i could pay him thanks friends standing beside me to what was a difficult time for many couples. now it is time for us to step up and meet the expectations we have set for ourselves. explained to us why the issue has been so divisive for some politicians? we fully respect the fact that people disagree. but public sentiment changed on this about a decade ago. the majority supported a change. different political parties and different governments have not wa nted different governments have not wanted to confront it because there are constituencies who are very noisy and oppose. we promised a public vote before changing the law. i was not a big fan of that. is a member of the government, i had to vote for that. we had a postal vote where there was a huge turnout. 62% of those said yes to a change in the law. in my own constituency, it was 76%. this was an opportunity and it is one we are going to take for the nation.? is it is one we are going to take for the nation. ? is it fair to say some politicians in australia have been away the attitudes amongst the majority of australian citizens? some people had a different opinion for faith —based reasons. some people had a different opinion forfaith —based reasons. some needed this referendum to show the strength of feeling. there was a clear statement from the australian people. one of the things that was regularly cited was your brexit vote. people believe the polls were wrong. when is the happy day? it has not been decided yet. it is the daunting reality that having gone through this debate, now were going to get married and i have really put my foot in it. probably next year once the law has changed. probably early next year. congratulations to tim and his partner ryan. just an update on the brexit situation. laura kuenssberg is telling as an mep has said the uk is telling as an mep has said the uk is poised to accept a concession over the northern ireland border. more on that when we get it. first, the weather. scarborough almost looking like summer. some quite interesting cloud formations in aberdeen at the moment. for today and tomorrow, fairly quiet and benign weather. a fine start. wet and windy on wednesday into thursday. by the end of the week, turning much colder. let's look at the rest of this afternoon. best of the sunshine over eastern parts of england. elsewhere, some breaks in the cloud. equally, some breaks in the cloud. equally, some rain. if you're heading home at about 5pm this evening, seeing fairly dry and cloudy over many southern and western parts of england and wales. in eastern parts, cloud will increase. it should stay dry. temperatures up to 7—9d. lots of dry weather over scotland. through tonight, not a great deal is going to change. it will stay dry. a lot of cloud around. that will prevent temperatures from falling too far. frost free start to your tuesday morning. lots of dry weather around. some bright spells developing. more rain moving its way into the far north of scotland, the breeze starting to pick up. still pretty mild. temperatures getting up to ten or 11 degrees. 0n pretty mild. temperatures getting up to ten or 11 degrees. on wednesday, things turn more unsettled. strengthening wind, some deals around. temperatures up in double figures. as the rain clears away to the east, strong winds through into thursday. the cold arctic air will start to move its way for the size words, gradually filling into all parts of the uk by the end of this week. that means a risk of some snow and ice. goodbye. iam i am christian fraser live in brussels, the headlines at 12pm. britain and the eu appear close to reaching a deal that will clear the way for the second phase of brexit talks. the decision to move on to trade talks is vital, it is vital for everybody. it is of huge value to the 27 members and to ourselves. this is a live shot of the building where the british prime minister is expected to arrive any time now. we will keep you up—to—date with the latest developments. i'm ben brown. also this afternoon: 700,000 children and pensioners in the uk have fallen into relative poverty over the past four years, according to a new report. metropolitan police commissioner cressida dick has condemned former officers who went public about pornography found on a computer in damian green's office in parliament. the east of england co—op is to become the first major retailer to sell food beyond its best—before date. and also coming up, the day to forget for england's ashes side. australia build on their massive first—innings total after bowling the visitors out for 227. and the number of schoolchildren with a part—time job has fallen by a fifth in the past five years. a very good afternoon and welcome to brussels. so we are 18 months on from the uk referendum, eight months into negotiations and we have arrived at what the uk government calls an important staging point. according to the european commission, the two sides are nearing an agreement which would clear the way for the two sides to move clear the way for the two sides to m ove o nto clear the way for the two sides to move onto the second phase the negotiation. we were told by a spokesman from the european commission today that solutions have been found to many of the outstanding issues, although members of the uk parliament who came just an hourago said of the uk parliament who came just an hour ago said it was still 50—50. so still be a lot to be decided by jean—claude juncker and theresa may when they sit down for lunch in around 50 minutes. so progress has been made on what happens to eu citizens currently living in the uk, as well as uk citizens living in the european union. and there also appears to be agreement over how much the uk pays the eu, in what has become known as the brexit divorce bill. the last key sticking point is what to do about the irish border. that is still where a lot of the work is being done at the moment. negotiations on that were held by diplomats overnight. it still isn't clear if a deal has been done. there is a draft document which is circulating, we will talk about that ina circulating, we will talk about that in a second with norman smith but just to put you in the picture about the border. the border is 310 miles long and has 200 public roads along it, which makes it a complex issue given the government's plans to leave the customs union and the single market. the government in dublin wants a written commitment but there will be no new border controls, something the irish cabinet has been meeting this morning to discuss. david davis is coming here to brussels to meet with his opposite number michel barnier and before he got on his flight barnier and before he got on his flight to brussels, he said all sides were keen to move on to the second phase of the negotiation. we have put seven months of work, both sides, into getting to this point and we are hoping that jean—claude juncker today will give sufficient progress we can move onto trade talks. the decision, of course, won't be taken until the 15th of december but that is what we are hoping for because trade talks are of enormous importance to the united kingdom and europe. donald tusk was very clear this is not a staging post but a firm deadline to nail down sufficient progress on talks. is this it? i think it is an important day. the council can always make up its own mind on the 15th but it is an important day, they will take a lot of guidance from the commission and everybody understands that the decision to move on to trade talks is vital. it is vital to everybody, it is of huge value to the 27 members and ourselves. the pm is once again having to get involved. are you struggling to get the job done? the first negotiator in this progress, from the beginning, has been the prime minister. she laid out the parameters in her lancaster house speech, she reset the negotiations at the florence speech. that is all done in conjunction, together. david davis in a broadly positive mood on his way here to brussels. i told you that separately there was an emergency cabinet meeting in dublin today to discuss what had been negotiated with the british side over the weekend. the deputy prime minister said things are at a sensitive phase, there is not wholly agreement, but they are looking for assurances on the good friday agreement and concrete guarantees that there will be no border between the north and the south. this is where i think the governments have had a difference of opinion. the british government essentially wants to deal with all of this in phase two and we are saying we need more reassurance before we can move on to phase two, that the parameters are clear within which we can solve these issues credibly. but... i'lljust finish this point, what we are asking are the same questions that the house of commons brexit committee are also asking, so i mean, if ever there was proof that the irish government is not being unreasonable here, the same questions are being asked by a majority of mps in westminster as we are asking ourselves. let's speak to our assistant political editor norman smith, who is in westminster. norman, there is a d raft is in westminster. norman, there is a draft document which philip lamberts, the mep, has been talking about in brussels and it relates to the irish border and it says that maybe the uk government is to give ground. tell us what they are talking about. well, what they would be floating is the idea that, really, they shouldn't be any differences between northern ireland and ireland once we leave, that there should be a regulatory convergence. in other words, northern ireland would still, to all intents and purposes, be operating in the single market and customs union, albeit it wouldn't actually be it either. now, the rub with that is that it suggests a distinctness with the rest of the uk, in other words there would be a diverges between northern ireland and the rest of the uk and that is a massive problem, certainly for unionist politicians in northern ireland but also conservative mps at westminster to macca the late and it is trying to macca the late and it is trying to strike that balance, trying to reassure dublin that nothing much is going to change and at the same time, reassure northern ireland that things are going to change and they are not going to become more distinct and respect from the uk. it is an incredibly difficult line to tread. the one thing that helps mrs may out today issue doesn't have to have a blueprint, there does not have a blueprint, there does not have to be a solution today. what they are after today is language, words, which both sides can grasp at and say, well, that gives us enough assurance to move onto the next stage of talks. the really difficult issue of coming up with a solution to the border problem, that is down the line. all they are talking about todayis the line. all they are talking about today is words to begin looking at a solution. word is very important, as you say. in the way that the prime minister also sells it to her backbenchers. i was making the point a little earlier that she is saying the financial settlement is in effect a quick throw quote, for this money we are guaranteeing you, what will we get —— a quid pro quo. the european commission don't like that language. no, they have sought to disentangle quite clearly the divorce arrangements from future trading arrangements. the british government position is that nothing is agreed until everything is agreed and therefore, they say, until we get clarity on a trade deal, the money is not absolutely guaranteed and if you play, sort of, games over a trade deal then maybe we will play games over money, so they are trying to put a condition on the money to try and get some sort of leverage over trade negotiations because, by and large, the only big lever the british government has is money and if we play it now, we have played it, that is our big negotiating hand, so the british government is trying, as it were, to keep that back and say, i know we have talked about money but be careful because if you don't give us that trade deal, then we mayjust take the money back. having said all that, the european commission and jean—claude juncker are acutely aware that she has to have something she can sell to her backbenchers back at home, so you would expect that when they for formulator document for the 27 leaders, there has to be some positive language she can take back to london. has to be some positive language she can take back to londonlj has to be some positive language she can take back to london. i am sure there will be but one of the curiosities of this whole brexit process is, despite the sort of various outbursts occasionally from leading brexiteers, by and large, the brexiteers have gone quiet, they have not been on the warpath, they have not been on the warpath, they have gone along with mrs may and indeed, whatever they may have felt in private about some of the compromises she has had to make, in public, they have not attacked, they have stuck by her, be it over money, the transitional period, the european court of justice, and the reason is they do not want to do anything to destabilise mrs may because she, blu ntly, destabilise mrs may because she, bluntly, is their best bet at delivering brexit because if she is toppled, it creates all sorts of uncertainty and instability in which the time frame and prospects for brexit might go out the window. you could even potentially have a new tory leader who has a different approach or you could even have a general election and jeremy corbyn government and so brexit could be com pletely government and so brexit could be completely undermined if mrs may is ousted. so for that reason, whatever compromises she has done, by and large, the brexiteers has stuck by her. norman, the moment, thank you very much. let's talk a little bit more about this thorny issue of the irish border. joining me now from dublin is neale richmond — the brexit spokesman for fine gael, the party in government in ireland. good to have you with us. what do you make up the reports we are getting about a draft agreement that would essentially keep the north and the —— with the same regulatory agreement says the south. patchy sound iam i am sorry, we are losing that line, ididn't i am sorry, we are losing that line, i didn't know if it was my communications in brussels but i think there is a dodgy line. we will see if we can come back to you later in the afternoon. so to bring you up to speed, we are still awaiting the arrival of the prime minister. she is due to go into a lunch any time there were jean—claude juncker. he did me this morning with eu parliamentary members, the negotiating team led by guy verhofstadt, and he came out of the meeting saying he was still 50—50. they are always a bit more pessimistic on the eu parliament side but they are an important part of because, at the end of this process , of because, at the end of this process, they do have a veto and crucially important as well, the eu 27 leaders. we shouldn'tjust accept because there is a form of words a cce pta ble because there is a form of words acceptable to the commission and the eu prime minister that things will go smoothly in weeks' time when the leaders meet here. a lot of work to be done over the next two weeks and it is important that the european council president cancelled meetings in the middle east, acutely aware of how much work there is to do that he is staying here in brussels. when a prime minister arrives here, we will bring you those pictures of course and keep you up—to—date with all the developments as and when we get them. for the moment, developments as and when we get them. forthe moment, i developments as and when we get them. for the moment, iwill developments as and when we get them. for the moment, i will hand you back to the studio. christian fraser, live in brussels, much more from christian throughout the afternoon. let me bring you some breaking news coming into us right now here in london and we are hearing that a pedestrian has died after being hit by a police car which was on an emergency call in haringey. 0fficers did give first aid at the scene, but the man, who was in his 405, was pronounced dead. this happened last night, in fact, around 6:45pm, on seven 5ister5 rd, close to the junction with elisabeth road and the independent —— the independent police complaints commission have been informed. so a pedestrian dying after being hit by a police car on an emergency call in haringey in london. more on that as it comes to us. the metropolitan police commissioner cressida dick has said that former officers were wrong to speak to the bbc about pornography they say was found on a computer in damian green's parliamentary office. speaking on the vanessa feltz show on bbc radio london, the scotland yard boss condemned what they had done. she said all police have a —— and she said there would be a review of whether any offences had been committed. this is a case from nine years ago. all police officers know very well that they have a duty of confidentiality, a duty to protect personal information. that duty, in my view, clearly endures after you leave the service and so it is my view that what they have done, based on my understanding of what they are saying, what they have done is wrong and i condemn it. we are reviewing what they appear to have done in my professional standards department, to see if any offences have been committed. police officers come across personal and sensitive information every day, most of them several times a day. they know full well it is their duty to protect that information and it is, for me, extremely important that the public know that the vast majority of officers protect private information properly and all the time. 0ur our home affairs correspondent danny shaw has been talking to me about that interview and explaining the significance of what cressida dick has been saying today. there is a possibility of potentially a prosecution under the data protection act in terms of not safeguarding confidential information. however, there is, under that legislation, a defence, a public interest defence, so if either of the men could argue that they were acting in the public interest, then the offence wouldn't be made out. the data protection act, i think the maximum sentence is a fine for something like that. 0ther a fine for something like that. other possible offences, whether it is misconduct, the official secrets act, i think probably unlikely at this stage but we are in the very early stages, the metropolitan police is just reviewing the circumstances around this at the moment, i haven't launched a formal investigation yet. now, let's talk about the issue over the weekend, a number of mps, notably nadine dorries, defending damian green, saying they allowed their staff to use their logon and passwords on parliamentary computers. that was in the papers over the weekend. we are hearing reaction to that from the commission, saying we are aware of reports that mps share logins and passwords and making enquiries of the relevant parliamentary authorities and we would remind mps and others of their obligations under the data protection act. this is from the office of the information commissioner tweeting this. so, aware of reports that mps are sharing logins and passwords and making enquiries of the relevant parliamentary authorities. we would remind mps and others of their obligations under the data protection act to keep personal data secure. more on that as it comes into us. the latest headlines on bbc newsroom live. britain and the european union appear to be closer to reaching a deal that would clear the way for the second phase of brexit talks but progress is still needed on the irish border issue. 700,000 children and pensioners in the uk have fallen into relative poverty over the last four years, according to a new report. and as you have just been according to a new report. and as you havejust been hearing, the metropolitan police commissioner cressida dick has condemned former officers who made public comments about pornography that was found on about pornography that was found on a computer in damian green's parliamentary office. right, all the latest sport now, catherine has got that. tell us how it is going down under with the ashes. not as badly as it was as the start of the day, let's put it that way. day three of the second ashes test started horribly for england but it finished rather better. england lost the succession of quick wickets this morning. there were some moments of brilliance from australia, moeen ali was caught and bowled by nathan lyons and watches from mitchell starc as he removesjonny bairstow with lightning quick reactions. england all out and over 200 runs behind the aussies, but they made the best possible start. james anderson striking early to remove cameron bancroft. the tourists took four wickets in a busy night session, including the valuable one of captain steve smith. australia finishing the day on 53—4. they lead by 268. we fought back well, we have pushed australia back tonight, which is obviously good to see and we can ta ke is obviously good to see and we can take some positive stuff from that. 0bviously take some positive stuff from that. obviously we are behind in the game but at the same time, it is really good, the fact that we have fought back and shown some good character to get ourselves back in the game. i thought we bowled really well tonight as a unit and have put some pressure back on australia. 0ne pressure back on australia. one other line of cricket news, alex hales can there be considered for england selection following confirmation that he is no longer a suspect in relation to an incident in bristol in september. hales and ben stokes were suspended after the incident. hales has been no —— told he's only a witness and will face no criminal charges. he could be available for england 0dis and t205 after christmas. when the manager gareth southgate has been told hisjob is safe when the manager gareth southgate has been told his job is safe even if his side loses every game in the world cup next year. southgate signed a four—year deal 12 months ago and the fa say he will be in charge for the next few tournaments. they say they have a long—term plan and have already seen results with world cup successes for the under 17 and under 20 sides. robert kubica will continue his attempt to make a remarkable return to f1 this week after testing for williams in abu dhabi, he will work on his back or delete their simulator to prove he can overcome the injuries he sustained in a rally crash. the poll has not raced in f1 for seven years. we should agree on the end because i have shown that even though i have limitations fitness wise, i am ready and i have never been in such good shape as i am now. of course, i have to work harder because i have my limitations, i have to prepare better and in different ways. my body, my mental strength, better and in different ways. my body, my mentalstrength, but better and in different ways. my body, my mental strength, but that is part of the job. it is my life and that is it. that is all this border now, i will be back with more just after the one o'clock news. see you there. 700,000 children and pensioners in the uk have fallen into relative poverty over the past four years, according to a new report. thejoseph rowntree foundation says it's the first sustained rise affecting these age groups for 20 years. the think tank warns decades of progress are in danger of unravelling, and has called on the government to take action. 0ur social affairs correspondent michael buchanan has more. for flo singleton, this drop—in centre has many benefits. she can use its computers to keep up with herfamily. she can meet friends. and, by being here, the 84—year—old does not have to spend money heating her own home. if you go out, you don't have to have your heating on, do you? trouble is, once it's dark, in the evenings now, and cold, you have to put the heating on, don't you? today's report says that successful projects to tackle poverty since 1997 are under threat. the report says, since 2013, an extra 300,000 pensioners and an additional 400,000 children are now living in poverty. in total, 14 million people in the uk are in poverty. what our report is now showing is that we're at a significant turning point. two years of sustained increases in the number of children and pensioners in poverty is a real red flag to government that they really have to do something now. researchers say the government should end the freeze on benefits, describing it as the biggest single change that would reduce poverty. but ministers say they are already spending tens of billions of pounds helping those in need, and that the national minimum wage has given low—earning households a significant pay rise. joining me now from our westminster studio is dalia ben—galim, director of policy, advice & communications at the charity gingerbread, who provide advice, support and campaigns for single parent families. thank you very much for being with us. what you make of these findings, an additional 700,000 children and pensioners in relative poverty, according tojoseph rowntree? pensioners in relative poverty, according to joseph rowntree? well, we really welcome the report and u nfortu nately, we really welcome the report and unfortunately, for an organisation like gingerbread, this isn't news to us, this is what we hear consistently from families who are trying to —— we are trying to support through our helpline and the work we do. so what we are seeing is a higher single parent employment rate and yet are really high number of families living in poverty. what is the key reason for that? in terms of employment, we have record levels of employment, we have record levels of employment, we have record levels of employment in this country. that is right, i think what this report does is highlight three different areas, which is what we hear in reality. 0ne areas, which is what we hear in reality. one is around the quality of work, so as you say, record number of employment, particularly for single parents, yet high in work poverty rates. so for those in work, it undermines the sense that if you have a job, you will be ok. work is not paying enough for many families. the second is around how the welfare system and benefit system work and what we are seeing around universal credit is that benefits have been cut back significantly and families will be worse off with universal credit and if it continues to be rolled out compared to where they are now. and the third is i think around an increase in living costs and living standards, so for example, the cost of housing is too high, the cost of childcare, and then when you compare that to incomes, it isjust then when you compare that to incomes, it is just not enough to make ends meet. i know the government was certainly dispute what you say about universal credit and the impact that is having but they are also saying that since 2010, the number of people in absolute poverty has actually fallen by more than half a million. i know joseph rowntree are talking about relative poverty but the government is saying fewer people in absolute poverty. i think there are lots of different ways you can measure poverty. relative poverty is one of the key measures, particularly internationally and what it does, it gives you a perspective of the number of people at the bottom, compared to people in the middle and how they are doing and i think what that demonstrated how unequal society is and where you see the biggest gap. absolute poverty tends to bea biggest gap. absolute poverty tends to be a line and people are above or below so it definitely gives you one measure but relative polity tends to be more accepted internationally as a true reflection. the government says they are trying to address all of this, spending an extra £4 billion on pensioners, carers and disabled people next year, they are spending around £90 billion a year on supporting people of working age, what do you say to that? there are definitely moves in government but they are undermined by other cuts. if you take universal credit, in the budget last week, the chancellor announced a number of measures to support those on universal credit. the problem is that few budgets before took away a lot of money from that system and so it is not replacing what has already been cut back and then it undermines the kind of mantra to make work pay. thank you very much for being with us, thanks for your thoughts. while we we re thanks for your thoughts. while we were just talking there, another line breaking news coming into us from the metropolitan police. a murder investigation has been launched after two people were found dead at an address in lewisham, in south—east london. police attending an address their in the early hours of this morning after report about a concern for the welfare of the occu pa nts concern for the welfare of the occupants and the officers forced their way in occupants and the officers forced theirway in and occupants and the officers forced their way in and found the bodies of a man and a woman. the man is believed to be in his 605 and the woman believed to be in her 405, pronounced dead at the scene and next of kin have been informed. so detectives, we are hearing, from the homicide and major crime command are investigating. that is the latest from the metropolitan police, a double murder investigation launched after two people were found dead at an address in lewisham. more on that as we get it. government funding for as we get it. government funding for a flagship british aid project to support british police in syria has been suspended. -- civilian —— civilian police. it's after whistleblowers told the bbc‘s panorama programme that some of the money was ending up in the hands of extremists. the foreign office says it's investigating the allegations, as panorama's jane corbin explains. britain is one of six countries that funds the free syrian police, set up to bring security to opposition—held areas. for eight months, british aid money meant to pay for officers' salaries was handed over by the police to an extremist group, nour al—din al—zenki. translation: zenki used to get a percentage from the salaries of the free police members. it was just about taking a percentage in return for the services, and to create a sort of equilibrium between the police and the fighters. the police we fund also provide support for zenki's barbaric justice system, responsible for torture and summary killings. the company which runs the aid project, adam smith international, or asi, told us the government was aware of cash going to zenki, and asi have strict guidelines in place to ensure detainees are treated fairly and plainly. are treated fairly and humanely. the foreign office has suspended funding while it investigates panorama's allegations. just the latest on the brexit talks and we have been talking all morning about how the irish border could still be a potential hurdle. we are just hearing from the irish prime minister leo varadkar that he is going to make a statement on phase one of these brexit talks a little bit later on today. he was saying on twitter, in fact, bit later on today. he was saying on twitter, infact, leo bit later on today. he was saying on twitter, in fact, leo varadkar, bit later on today. he was saying on twitter, infact, leo varadkar, "i will be making a statement on phase one brexit talks later today." that is after a special cabinet meeting. he has spoken to the european commission presidentjean—claude juncker and also european council president donald tusk about the negotiations and reports beginning to emerge that there has been progress on that crucial irish border question and guarantees that the uk, northern ireland and the republic of ireland, there will be an alignment. so we will have to wait and see what the details of that are because it is obviously a hugely complex situation, how to afford a ha rd hugely complex situation, how to afford a hard border along the irish border. anyway, we will hear from the irish prime minister leo varadkara the irish prime minister leo varadkar a little the irish prime minister leo va radkar a little bit later the irish prime minister leo varadkar a little bit later today on that and also, we will be talking to our island correspondent chris page in the next few minutes. police in malta have arrested ten people in connection with the car bomb murder of blogger daphne ca ruana galizia. prime ministerjoseph muscat told reporters that police operations were underway and that the people arrested were all maltese national is unknown to the police. caruana galizia was killed close to her home on 16th october in an attack which shocked the country. the 53—year—old was known for her blog accusing top politicians of corruption. a co—operative group is to start selling food beyond its best—before date. 125 shops in east anglia will sell tinned goods and dried food such as pasta, crisps and rice for a flat rate of 10p. it's part of a drive to reduce the seven million tons of food thrown away in the uk each year. let's get more on that from catherine schell work, a retail a nalyst, catherine schell work, a retail analyst, joining us from the studio in leeds. is this a good idea, selling food for 10p ago? it is really important we try to minimise food waste. this is one of the schemes but retailers are setting out today to get us to use food which are still safe but perhaps not the optimum quality. some people might be concerned it is not safe if it has gone past the best before date? there is a difference between a use by date and the best before date. how much beyond best before can you go? a couple of days or weeks or what? at a couple of months with things in tins and packets. it is about using some sense. it is about making sure these things get into people's cupboards and are used. is this the start of a whole new way of dealing with the vast amount of food thrown away in this country every year? that are lots of initiatives. we want to make sure that food banks and charities receive as much as possible and ensure we are not throwing things away. it is about how you use leftovers, how'd you sure things get used up in the home, and ensure people are educated on how to store food and use it more effectively. lots of retailers and charities are working on this. good to talk to you. thank you. it hasn't exactly got the makings of a week of thrills and spills, quite a week of thrills and spills, quite a quiet start, but it will change. things get more dramatic from mid week on words. some spells of sunshine in the east. more cloud further west. breezy into the far north. temperatures generally several degrees above freezing. the best chance of seeing some sunshine is in parts of southern england, into the midlands. also north—east england and southern scotland. temperatures not too bad for the time of year. a big change on wednesday. rain through northern ireland, scotland and other western fringes. things turn much colderfor the end of the week with some wintry showers. this is bbc newsroom live. our latest headlines: britain and the eu are understood to have agreed a deal that means there will be no hard border between northern ireland and the republic. the decision to move onto trade talks is vital. it is vital for everybody, i huge value for the 27 members and to ourselves. one in five people in the uk now lives in poverty, according to a report by thejoseph rowntree foundation. the charity says the number of children and pensioners living in households with low incomes is increasing. the metropolitan police commissioner, cressida dick, has criticised former police officers who've spoken about allegations that legal pornography was found on a computer belonging to the cabinet minister, damien green, nine years ago. the east of england co—op is to start selling food that's past its best—before date for 10p — to try to reduce waste. dried food and tinned products will be included. let's bring you the very latest from the fighting in yemen, that proxy war which is raging between iran and saudi arabia. were hearing reports now that the former president of yemen has been killed. he has been ina yemen has been killed. he has been in a house in the capital. we know that iran backed forces blew up the house of ali abdullah saleh, the former yemeni president, earlier today. as fighting intensified in the capital. this is a report on television and radio that the former president of yemen has been killed. there is unverified footage on social media showing a corpse which resembles the former president. all of that confirmed at the moment. but thatis of that confirmed at the moment. but that is the latest were hearing. the official tv station of the armed houthi movement is that the former president ali abdullah saleh has been killed. we will bring you more on that as it comes to others. more now on the brexit negotiations, where britain and the european union appear to be close to reaching a deal that will clear the way for the second phase of talks. eu sources said the two sides were "nearing solutions", ahead of theresa may's meeting with the european commission president, jean—claude juncker, in brussels this afternoon. ireland's cabinet have been meeting this morning to discuss whether enough progress has been made on the issue of the irish border. our ireland correspondent chris page is in belfast. we are hearing that the taoiseach is going to make a statement later? you just put that on twitter. is that a positive sign? not quite clear at the minute. he will make a public statement this afternoon in dublin. this morning he called a special sitting of his cabinet. they did not have a final draft text to look at, either to sign off or reject. however, some developments in brussels over the last hour or so. the irish national broadcaster says it has been given access to a text. there was a suggestion that northern ireland could follow the same way as the republic of ireland for the movement of goods. the democratic unionist party would not be happy with a different situation in northern ireland to the rest of the uk. the initial reaction to the leaked d raft the initial reaction to the leaked draft that rte have got access to is not particularly positive. i must stress that that is a leaked draft. we have seen theresa may arrived in brussels for significant talks which he is hoping will pave the way for trade talks. doctor was more about this possibility of regulatory alignment. what that might mean. that is a very difficult square to circle, if you like, are circled to square, however you want to be dead. either way, doesn't northern ireland end up with some kind of special status which is different from the uk, if it is to be aligned with a public? that is the question. everyone in london, dublin and brussels will be looking at what the final text says about continued regulatory lake alignment, die virgins and con virgins. these terms can seem jargon and technical, but it is essentially about agriculture, food production, pharmaceuticals, at the moment goods are traded back and forth across the border with no checks. if there was to be a difference in regulations, there would have to be some sort of checks, but if you put northern ireland in the same box as the republic of ireland in terms of following rules, what do you do when goods are traded between northern ireland and the rest of the uk? the agriculture industry is one of the biggest market. the main market for farmers in northern ireland is the rest of the uk. the dup would argue that any barriers for trade between northern ireland and the rest of the uk would be problematic for farmers. that gives you an idea of the complexity. if there is a sendoff on the text today, there will be much more to work out in the coming weeks, months and potentially years. thank you. joining me again now from dublin is neale richmond — the brexit spokesman for fine gael, the party in government in ireland. first of all, we have heard that the taoiseach will make a statement today. the irish government is clear that they are prepared to move onto the next phase. we want to ensure there is no return of our border. i am hopeful that the taoiseach will say that. ultimately there is not a hard deadline today. were aware that theresa may is meeting jean—claude younger. the meeting on the 14th of december is where we will have to give final sign off. as far as we're concerned, we have already missed a deadline in october so we are already playing a game of catch up. i was talking to chris page in belfast about how this might work, that regulatory alignment, but eve ryo ne that regulatory alignment, but everyone to call it. doesn't in the end it means giving northern ireland some sort of special status? not necessarily. the irish government has said we are not in the business of wanting to take northern ireland away from the united kingdom as a whole, but we have to make sure that customs affairs are protected. i believe there is room to discuss the level of alignment with northern ireland and the rest of the uk. todayis ireland and the rest of the uk. today is a very tough day. brexit has been very difficult for the island of our island and the irish government as a whole. we will ensure that relations with the uk are as good as possible. we will leave it there, it is not a great quality line. let's look at these pictures of theresa may arriving in brussels for a very important meeting later on with the european commission president. heightened optimism. there she is with jean—claude juncker. heightened optimism, i think it's fair to say, that britain is going to be able to move forward to talks with the eu that are on trade. the next phase of the brexit talks, if you like. the thing that theresa may has been pushing for, trying very hard to get, but all those various hurdles that have to be crossed, the irish border question, the eu citizens question, the divorce bill, those hurdles when the eu has always insisted it once sufficient progress. looks like britain is going to get the go—ahead for phase two of the talks, but we will wait and see. crucial events unfolding in brussels. the number of schoolchildren with a part—time job has fallen by a fifth in the past five years. the findings come from freedom of information requests to local authorities across the uk who issue child employment permits. it's thought changing consumer patterns and pressure to do well at school are responsible. let's get more on this story with gareth lewis, chair of the national network for children in employment and entertainment. hejoins us from winsford in cheshire. just give us your thoughts on this? my just give us your thoughts on this? my thoughts are within my own local authority the figures are actually up. nationally, i'm not sure why figures should have fallen. i wonder whether it's to do with social media and children being more distracted by other activities. i don't really know why the fingers should have fallen. there is no competition in applying for work permits for employers. there is no cost involved in applying for work permits. the main restrictions might be that there are problems of the number of hours children can work during the week. they cannot work after 70 night. they cannot work before 7am. they cannot work more than two hours ona they cannot work more than two hours on a sunday. hours are restricted on school days. these regulations have beenin school days. these regulations have been in place since the early 19305. you wonder whether it is having an impact on the figures nationally. what other rights and wrongs of schoolchildren being in a part—time job? what are the advantages and disadvantages? personally, i can't think of any disadvantages with children being in employment. as long as it doesn't have an impact on their education, which is why the local authority do manage the licensees through the education welfare department. they look at the hours they are working, the types of employment they have got. as long as the local authority is happy that it complies with regulations, then a work permit would be issued. as far as advantages are concerned, young people, this is a form of work experience. you start off with a paper round, you start speaking to people in the street, you build confidence and self—esteem. you earn your own money to pay for your mobile phone or your own leisure activities. it is obviously a relief for pa rents activities. it is obviously a relief for parents as well. very good to talk to you. thank you. the headlines on bbc newsroom live: britain and the eu appear close to reaching a deal that would clear the way for the second phase of brexit talks — but progress is still needed on the irish border issue. 700,000 children and pensioners in the uk have fallen into relative poverty over the past four years, according to a new report. the metropolitan police commissioner, cressida dick, condemns former officers who made public comments about pornography found on a computer in damian green's parliamentary office. a spanish supreme court judge has decided to release on bail, six former catalan separatist ministers, who were held in custody over their part in attempting to illegally break the region away from spain. they're facing allegations of sedition and rebellion against the state, after declaring independence in october. two other former ministers remain in custody. the eight had appealed for their release to campaign in the forthcoming catalan elections. meanwhile in brussels, an extradition hearing is under way against the former catalan leader, carles puigdemont and four other former regional ministers. all eight ministers have been imprisoned for more than a month. today, they have appealed to the judge to say they should be to campaign from tomorrow as part of the catalan elections because they are held on remand in custody. they have not been charged. the crane they could be charged with include sedition or rebellion against the state, up to 30 years in prison. the judge has said that six of those ministers can be released so long as they pay bail of $100,000. in the case of two of the ministers, they won't be released. this is the former vice president and the former interior minister. the judge said they were responsible for not doing enough to prevent alleged violence on 20 september. this was just before the referendum took place. the banned referendum took place. spanish police were trying to get documents to stop the referendum going ahead. the allegation is that for 19 hours there was violence on the streets and the spanish police were stuck inside trying to get documents. that is part of the reason why these ministers will remain in prison. i've spoken in the past few days to some of the relatives of other independence activists. they will also remain in prison overnight. they say they are distressed about the decision. separately, the former catalan president who fled to belgium has appeared this morning with four other ministers. they have given their defence ruling today. elections are in three weeks. some of those ministers will be out campaigning tomorrow. the spanish government is worried about this creating almost a martyr effect. it is neck and neck in the polls at the moment. very close. six of these ministers are likely to leave prison today. i want to bring you the very latest from brussels. one of the key issues is the irish border. we are hearing from donald tusk, a very encouraging message on twitter. sufficient progress is what the eu has being insisting on. not an absolute deal, but sufficient progress on the financial settlement, the rights of eu citizens and the irish border. the irish question was looking like the toughest nut to crack. that irish government effectively having on the whole thing. leo varadkar, the irish taoiseach, is going to speak at around 2:30pm on this. it looks like there is enough progress on this to allow trade talks between britain and the eu. more on that story coming up. now, it's perhaps not the most romantic of settings, but an australian mp has used a parliamentary debate on same—sex marriage to propose to his partner. tim wilson was speaking as a bill to legalise gay marriage enters its final stages after a long campaign. mr wilson's partner of nine years, ryan bolger, was listening in the public gallery, when he got something of a surprise... there's only one thing left to do. ryan patrick bolger, will you marry me? tim wilson has been talking to my colleague victoria derbyshire about why he made the proposal, and admitted that he was pretty confident ryan would say yes. i was pretty optimistic ryan would say yes. it was an extraordinary day for him as well. i didn't realise we would be the first couple to do this, but we have been debating this issue for an awfully long time. our relationship has been at the centre of it. it was ultimately the only way i thought i could pay him thanks for him standing beside me to what was a difficult time for many couples. now it is time for us to step up and meet the expectations we have set for ourselves. explain to us why the issue has been so divisive for some politicians? we fully respect the fact that people disagree. but public sentiment changed on this about a decade ago. the majority started to support a change. different political parties and different governments have not wanted to confront it because there are constituencies who are very noisy and opposed. we promised a public vote before changing the law. i was not a big fan of that. that's no secret. as a member of the government, i had to vote for it. we had a postal vote where there was a huge turnout. 80%. 62% of those said yes to a change in the law. in my own constituency, it was 76%. this was an opportunity and it is one we are going to take for the nation. is it fair to say some politicians in australia have been way behind the attitudes amongst the majority of australian citizens? some people had a different opinion forfaith—based reasons. some needed this postal voted to show the strength of feeling. some told me they would get a response of 50—50 but it turned out to be 60—40. there was a clear statement from the australian people. one of the things that was regularly cited was your brexit vote. people believe the polls were wrong. when is the happy day? it has not been decided yet. it is the daunting reality that having gone through this debate, now we are going to get married and i have really put my foot in it. i've said yes, i'm definitely going to do it. probably next year once the law has changed. probably early next year. congratulations to tim and ryan. in a moment, sophie will have the news at one pm. now the weather. generally speaking, a fine start to the week. we will see a change of wet and windy matter in the middle of the week, then it will turn dramatically colder. —— wet and windy weather. the best of the brightness was to be found in eastern areas. anywhere where the cloud breaks up, there could be the odd fog patch and temperatures on the hall will be several degrees above freezing. 5—7dc. tomorrow, large amounts of cloud. the breeze picking up across the northwest. temperatures not doing too badly for the time of year, 8—11 degrees. a very mild day with south—westerly winds ahead of this. it looks like quite a deep area of low pressure. bringing very wet and windy weather. would open the floodgates to return to colder air. as the wind switches to colder air. as the wind switches to the north—westerly, temperatures will drop away as the day goes on. by will drop away as the day goes on. by the afternoon, 4—9 degrees. friday, a very cold steve. sunshine around, but mostly snow showers blowing into some western parts. certainly northern scotland. perhaps down the east coast at times as well. temperatures on the thermometer 2—6d. for many of us, it will feel subzero, in the strength of the wind. on the verge of a brexit breakthrough in brussels. the prime minister is said to be close to reaching a deal with the eu. after many rounds of talks, sufficient progress appears to have been made on the major sticking points — the divorce bill, eu citizens' rights and the northern ireland border. we've put seven months of work, both sides, into getting to this point and we're hoping that mrjuncker, today, will give us sufficient progress so we can move on to trade talks. the northern irish border — now the uk is said to be close to accepting a concession that there will be no hard border. we'll be live in brussels, westminster and dublin with the latest. also this lunchtime. nearly 750,000 pensioners and children in the uk have fallen into relative poverty over the past four years, says a charity. if you go out, you don't have to have your heating on, do you? trouble is, once it's dark in the evenings now, and cold,

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