good afternoon and welcome to bbc news. a deal which promised to resolve one of the country s longest and most damaging rail strikes on the country s largest rail franchise has collapsed, raising the prospect of further industrial action. train drivers, who are members of the trade union aslef, had been balloted about operating trains without a guard or onboard supervisor under certain circumstances. the proposed deal had been condemned as a shocking betrayal by the trade union that represents conductors, the rmt, who began the industrial action last april. their train driving colleagues have now rejected the deal, with 54% voting against it. aslef says it will respect the ballot of its members. southern‘s parent company, govia thameslink railway, has reacted to the aslef vote. in a statement, they have said: ‘naturally, we re saddened and hugely disappointed, as will be our passengers, with today s decision by drivers, particularly as the agreement carried the full
thousands of homes have been evacuated in christchurch, new zealand, after two separate fires have combined, covering nearly 5,000 acres. and, a century of the wrens the navy marks the formation of the women s royal naval service during the first world war. it s 5.00pm. our main story is that a potential deal to end the long running dispute on southern rail has been rejected by members of the train drivers‘ union, aslef. in a ballot, 54% voted against the proposal which had been negotiated by the union s leaders. southern says it s hugely disappointed and will be seeking more talks as soon as possible. the union is expected to try to renegotiate the deal. but, for the moment, it means there is still no end in sight to the disruption on one of britain s busiest commuter networks. 0ur correspondent, john young, is at brighton railway station where many commuters affected by the southern rail dispute travel from. more from you and what people have been saying there today?”