increases the terror threat level in northern ireland from substantial to severe , meaning an attack is considered highly likely. humza yousaf is confirmed as scotland s first minister, becoming the first person from an ethnic minority background in the role. hello and welcome. we start this hour in france, where another day of co ordinated, nationwide protests is very much under way, as unions continue to oppose president macron s pension reforms. over a million people took part in similar protests in the last week. we have seen extraordinary scenes again out on the streets. let s go to our paris correspondent, hugh schofield. immediately behind you, looking slightly quieter than the last time we spoke, but very much give us a sense of what has been going on and in different parts of the country of course as well. course as well. yeah, we re at the end of the course as well. yeah, we re at the end of the itinerary course as well. yeah, we re at the end of the itinera
a 15 year old boy and girl are charged with the murder of 16 year old brianna jeye who was killed in a village park in cheshire on saturday. one of the 12 boys rescued from a thai cave in 2018, has died in the uk after suffering a head injury. the uk s most expensive drug saves a toddler with a rare genetic condition. but it s too late to save her terminally ill older sister. nicola sturgeon is stepping down as scotland s first minister, and leader of the scottish national party. she ll leave office as soon as her successor is chosen. ms sturgeon says she can no longer give the role the full commitment she believes it requires. and she hinted that after eight years as first minister efforts to broaden the appeal of scottish independence could be hampered by what she called polarised opinions about her. we ll look back at nicola sturgeon s career and get political reaction from edinburgh and london. but first lorna gordon reports on events this morning. she is scotland s lon
forward, the scottish government would work with the uk government to explore potential amendments to the bill. the secretary of state refused this offer stating there would be no further meetings between the governments on this issue. he set up three options for the scottish government. we can drop the bill passed by the majority of this parliament altogether, we can address these concerns in an amended bill without providing which bill without the section 35 on top of it can pursue legal action. the uk government state of does not provide a reason. any divergence of approaching scotland would be unacceptable saying ensure it to different regimes create adverse effects. it is therefore proved impossible to find a way forward or to consider a form of amending the bill that this parliament would agree to and lead to the secretary of state to revoke the order. the scottish government remains committed to the bill as amended and as agreed by a majority in this parliament, which
tonight with the context, brian taylor, political commentatorfor the herald, and leigh ann caldwell, political reporter for the washington post. welcome to the programme. there s been an evolution in the way the west views this war in ukraine, an evolution in the arms which nato countries are supplying first it was shoulder held stingers, then the hymars, next came the patriot missile systems, now it s a conversation over tanks. the red lines have shifted with the evolving nature of the war. in recent months, the allies have come to the opinion that a year long stalemate in ukraine is in no one s favour except russia s. so what would it take to allow ukraine to win rather than just avoid losing? what would ukraine require in order to punch through the russian defences in towns like bakhmut and soledar, from where the bbc s andrew harding reports. we are in an area where russian and ukrainian infantry now appear to be fighting at close quarters. clambering through the remain
it s five weeks since nurses first went on strike this winter. yet there s no resolution in sight. in fact, the dispute is only intensifying. nurses are taking industrial action at even more nhs trusts today than they did before christmas. we want to make nursing a safe and sustainable profession for all. we want our colleagues and the patients we care for to receive the care they deserve. nurses at 55 trusts in england are on strike today and tomorrow. next month, the industrial action will be more widespread, covering 73 trusts. 12 health boards and organisations in wales will also go on strike. a decision on further strikes in northern ireland will be taken in the coming weeks, while in scotland industrial action remains paused as negotiations continue. the advice for people who have medical appointments on strike days is to assume they re going ahead if the hospital hasn t been in touch. nhs leaders are warning that the strikes couldn t come at a more difficult time for t