Sharply, after its launch on the New York Stock Exchange. In china, we witness the official efforts to silence popular criticism ahead of the National Peoples congress. And jackies Life Afterjfk the lost letters which reveal a love affair with a senior british diplomat. And coming up in sportsday later in the hour on bbc news high drama in dubai for andy murray. After an epic tie break, the world number one is into the the semifinals. Good evening. One of president trumps most trusted colleagues, the us Attorney GeneralJeff Sessions, is under intense pressure tonight. Hes facing allegations that he lied under oath about his contacts with russian officials during the election campaign. But mr sessions, speaking within the past hour, has denied any improper contact and hes announced that hell not be involved in the official investigation into claims of russian influence in the president ial election. Our North America editor jon sopel reports. Marine one touching down on the navys newest aircraft carrier, and the president feeling the full downdraught of the latest setback to buffet his administration. His Attorney General, Jeff Sessions, facing charges that he lied under oath during his Confirmation Hearings over his contacts with the russians. But the president is standing by him. Mr president , do you still have confidence in the Attorney General . Total. When were you aware that he spoke to the Russian Ambassador . I wasnt aware at all. Whats emerged is that then senator sessions met the Russian Ambassador at the Republican Convention injuly. He met him again in september. But at his confirmation hearing this january, he denied any contact with the russians. If there is any evidence that anyone affiliated with the Trump Campaign communicated with the russian government in the course of this campaign, what will you do . Senator franken, im not aware of any of those activities. I have been called a surrogate a time or two in that campaign and i did not have communications with the russians. Im unable to comment on it. Weve now had the National Security adviser fired over his legs to russia, the Attorney General accused of perjuring himself because of his contacts and the white house is absolutely insistent there is nothing untoward, there is nothing to see, and the crowd should move on. But the questions keep piling up. Senior democrats are demanding Jeff Sessions resignation and for the appointment of a special prosecutor. The fact that the Attorney General, the top cop in our country, lied under oath to the American People is grounds for him to resign. It is grounds for him to resign. He has proved that hes underqualified and unfit to serve in position. Of trust. Republicans arent going that far, but a growing number have said that you cant have an Attorney General overseeing an investigation into russian activities, if he himself is comprised. They are demanding him recuse himself. Based on what we have read on the information is not complete, the Attorney General should further clarify and i think you will need to recuse himself at this point. At a News Conference a short time agoJeff Sessions insisted hed done nothing wrong, but he did bow to pressure from within his own party. Ive decided to recuse myself from any existing oi to recuse myself from any existing or future investigations of any matter relating in any way to the campaigns for president of the united states. Goblin webb bless the usa united states. Goblin webb bless the usa god bless the usa. Theres no disguising the warmth of the reception the us president received. His hope is the rest of the american personnel are more interested in what hes doing in National Security and jobs than they are in latest washington brouhaha. That report just in are in latest washington brouhaha. That reportjust in from our North American editor, john sobel. Policing in england and wales is in a potentially perilous state, with some forces putting the public at risk, according to the police watchdog, the inspectorate of constabulary. The report did say most of the 43 forces were providing a good service, but that others were letting victims down. Police leaders say forces are having to prioritise more because of a sharp fall in their budgets, as our home editor mark easton reports. The arrest of a suspected drug dealer in bedfordshire this morning. This is the traditional view of what police do. They nick criminals. But the alleged crime scene offers clues to what 21st Century Policing now involves. Phones and sim cards may reveal victims requiring protection. A laptop might reveal evidence of cybercrime. The presence of a womans possessions could suggest a Safeguarding Issue to consider. Bedfordshire police were today described as inadequate in a report by her majestys inspectorate of constabulary, with around a third of Chief Constables in england and wales told their effectiveness was not good enough. Theres a rationing of Police Services in some areas because resources are stretched. Deliberately on occasions. The amount of risk associated with a victim is downplayed. Bedfordshire police is criticising a report which claims the force is inadequate. In an extraordinary response, Bedfordshire Police issued their own video rebuttal, complaining the official inspectors had got it wrong. Later, the Chief Constable told the bbc the hmic had failed to recognise the forces changing priorities, including a cyber unit. Only today, the officers and staff from this unit have arrested an individual who is responsible for downloading the most abusive and awful images of children. And thats what were doing, were protecting people on a daily basis. And im very frustrated that the good work of the force hasnt been shown. Police budgets have been cut by over 20 in the last five years, but then crime has fallen by a third in the same period. The government argues if some forces are coping, poor performers should get a grip. Theresa may once said the mission of the police was to cut crime. No more and no less. But of the priority and emergency calls they receive, actually less than a quarter are directly crime related. A typical day in a typical force will see 50 arrests, but also 14 incidents relating to Mental Health issues and 12 missing person reports. Police work has shifted from catching villains to protecting victims. There was an age where if someone had an obvious injury from an assault, somebody got arrested, how straightforward is that . It has completely changed, its about safeguarding. Its about assessing what the risk is. Have Police Officers become social workers . Theyve had to become broader Public Servants as well as, not forgetting and they still make lots of arrests, they still take people to court. Its a long way from z cars or the sweeney. Whether forces are getting their 21st century priorities right is a debate that continues to rage. Mark easton, bbc news. British cycling has apologised for failings in the way it looked after its riders, and its promised to improve. An investigation was launched last year, after allegations of sexism and bullying. And the teams new chairman, jonathan browning, has set out a plan for improving the welfare of athletes. Our Sports Editor dan roan has more details. For years the story was one of success British Cycling defined by medals and glory. But now the image has been tainted amid a damaging tide of bullying and sexism allegations. All have been denied, but today, the man tasked with salvaging the sports reputation told me it was time for cycling to say sorry. Do you owe riders and staff an apology today . Weve already met with our groups of both riders and staff and weve made it very clear that where theres been failings, we apologise for those. We recognise them, but were going to do something about them and move forward. So there was a Bullying Culture then here at British Cycling . I think there have been some well reported instances where behaviour was unacceptable. Today, with training here continuing as normal, British Cycling unveiled a 39 point action plan, designed to overhaul governance and athlete welfare. It all stems back to last year, when former sprint cyclist jess varnish complained about sexism and bullying amid a Culture Of Fear at the sports high Class Performance programme. And shes not alone. A decade ago, Jenny Copnall was National Mountain biking champion and says she was also a victim of discrimination at British Cycling. Ive certainly known of staff who have said to me down the years, and particularly when i retired, that they supported and they had felt bad for my situation, but hadnt been able to say anything, because they were worried about their job. The Idea Ofjob Preservation was almost a joke amongst riders, in the way that management behaved and decisions were made. British cyclings credibility was further damaged yesterday, when mps heard about a failure to keep records of medical treatments for riders. Sir bradley, if we could have a quick chat, please . My house the man at the centre of the storm, sir bradley wiggins, today declined to answer questions about the contents of a now infamous medical package delivered to him in 2011. The controversy refusing to go away. But theres a real warning here for other sports, too. A Growing Sense that British Cycling is symbolic of a win at all Costs Mentality that comes at too high a price. Today, it was warned that unless things improve, it could lose millions of pounds worth of public funding. Your best funded and most successful Governing Body is in crisis, isnt it . Well, theres a lot going on around British Cycling. There are a number of fires that seem to be going off in different areas and its difficult for them at this point in time. I was shocked and disturbed by what i heard yesterday, particularly around the area of medical management. Do you accept it looks very suspicious . I accept we have many gaps that we need to address in how we run some of the areas of the business. These are dark days for the sport and with publication of whats thought to be an explosive report into cyclings culture now imminent, lifting the gloom wont be easy. Dan roan, bbc news, manchester. A brief look at some of the days other other news stories. The syrian army says its regained control of the city of palmyra from the Islamic State group. Is has twice held palmyra which is famous for its ancient ruins during the six year syrian conflict. During that time theyve destroyed some of the citys greatest monuments. Polls have just closed in the second election to the Northern Ireland assembly in less than a year. The power sharing executive, led by the Democratic Unionist Party and sinn fein, collapsed injanuary. The votes will be counted tomorrow. Three skiers have been killed in an avalanche in the northern italian alps. 18 people were skiing off piste on fresh snow when they were hit by the avalanche, near courmayeur, this afternoon. Three people were seriously injured and were taken to hospital by helicopter. A man has admitted raping a woman just hours before he married his pregnant partner. Derry mccann, whos 28, attacked the woman in a park in east london injanuary. Mccann was jailed for a similar attack when he was a teenager. Hell be sentenced next month and was told he faced a very, very long time in prison. The french president ial candidate, Emmanuel Macron, has unveiled his policy agenda promising to boost the economy and fight corruption. Mr macron, whos running on a centrist manifesto, had been criticised for being too vague. Tonight it emerged police have searched the home of one of mr macrons rivals, Francois Fillon. He now finds himself in the unusual position in this election of being the only major candidate not facing possible criminal charges, as our paris correspondent Lucy Williamson reports. May his stage may not be as glitzy as the oscars but Emmanuel Macron knows how to play the star. Never mind that critics describe his campaign as blah blah land all talk, no real policies. Today this 39 year old first time candidate came armed with plenty of them. Hes promised big tax cuts, spending cuts and the sale of Government Stakes in some companies but hes also promised 50 Billion Euros of investment and help for those on low incomes. Mr macrons supporters are largely young, urban professionals. So, onejournalist asked why does a former Investment Banker deserve the Working Class Vote . Translation i was born in a provincial town and in a family that had nothing to do with the world of journalists or bankers. I climbed the ranks. Its with a lot of pride that i say i am the candidate of the working and the middle classes and frankly when i compare my project with Marine Le Pens, she wants to withdraw from the eurozone and destroy 30 of peoples savings. Expanding his vote to Blue Collar Workers is key for mr macron. Here in lyon hes won over the socialist mayor but the support of the citys Factory Workers is proving much more difficult. Translation if its between macron and Marine Le Pen in the second round i would vote for macron, but it would be a vote of necessity, not the vote i really want. I think he will better try to get closer to people in general. By people, i include, of course, older people, more conservative people and workers who work. Polls suggest Marine Le Pen has the support of almost half the Blue Collar Vote in france and is gaining among farmers and some Public Servants, too. But shes also battling claims that she misused eu money to pay party staff. Emmanuel macrons strategy lies in Holding Together two different political tides. The centre left and the centre right. Critics say the glue in that formula has been mr macrons personality and his deliberately vague ideas. This programme tries to offer something to both sides but will it be enough to keep them faithful and get them out to vote . With his centre right rival Francois Fillon under investigation for embezzlement, this presidency could come down to a choice between mr macron or Marine Le Pen, between globalisation or protectionism the new political divide. Lucy williamson, bbc news, paris. This weekend china will open its annual parliamentary session, the National Peoples congress. As usual the weeks leading up to the congress have been marked by a nationwide effort to stop some of the most marginalised members of society from reaching beijing. These petitioners are often prevented from airing their grievances and this year our Correspondentjohn Sudworth has had first hand experience of the tactics deployed by the authorities to silence criticism. There are some violent images in this report. Give us the camera. Our interview is not going to plan. We are stopped from meeting the family weve come to see. This woman and her sister claim their father was beaten to death by a policeman in a land dispute. Theyre among the many thousands of people who travel regularly to beijing seeking justice known as petitioners. So the petitioners hope to use chinas annual parliamentary gathering to make their case. But heres the reality, Chinas Communist Party doesnt want the pomp and pageantry spoilt by. By this countrys dispossessed and marginalised. The thugs force us out and smash our cameras. Before the start of the National Peoples congress this weekend, a major Security Operation is under way. While local o