is alleged to have said the mp diane abbott made him want to hate all black women. how low would he have to sink, what racist, woman hating threat of violence would he have to make, before the prime minister plucked up the courage to hand back the £10 million that he's taken from him? the gentleman apologised, genuinely, for his comment. and that remorse should be accepted. also this lunchtime, hopes the economy might be easing out of recession with the january sales boosting stronger growth figures. claims some women who pay to freeze their eggs are being misled about the chances of having a baby in later life. and the giant redwood, the biggest tree in the world: why there are now more of them in the uk than their native california. and coming up on bbc news. wales include aaron ramsey in their squad for the crucial euro play—offs. he has barely played since september

but hopes to be fit for next week's game against finland in cardiff. good afternoon. the prime minister has told the commons that alleged comments made by tory party donor frank hester were wrong and racist. mr hester is reported to have said the mp diane abbott made him want to hate all black women, and should be shot. at prime minister's questions in the last hour, the labour leader sir keir starmer asked rishi sunak if he was proud to be bankrolled by a someone using racist and mysoginist language. here's our political correspondent damian grammaticus. will correspondent damian grammaticus. you give the minister? will you give the money back, prime minister? iii} will you give the money back, prime minister? ' :: ., , ., minister? £10 million, is a huge amount of—

minister? £10 million, is a huge amount of money _ minister? £10 million, is a huge amount of money and _ minister? £10 million, is a huge amount of money and a - minister? £10 million, is a hugei amount of money and a political problem for rishi sunak. he has criticised remarks said to be made by the donor frank hester as racist. sir keir starmer seized on that. is the prime minister proud to be bankrolled by someone who uses racist and misogynistic language which says he wants to hate all black women? mr which says he wants to hate all black women?— which says he wants to hate all black women? mr speaker, they alle . ed black women? mr speaker, they alleged comments _ black women? mr speaker, they alleged comments were - black women? mr speaker, they alleged comments were wrong, | black women? mr speaker, they - alleged comments were wrong, they were racist_ alleged comments were wrong, they were racist and he has now... as i said, _ were racist and he has now... as i said. they— were racist and he has now... as i said, they were wrong and they were racist _ said, they were wrong and they were racist and _ said, they were wrong and they were racist and he — said, they were wrong and they were racist and he has rightly apologised for them _ racist and he has rightly apologised for them and that remorse should be accepted, mr speaker. there is no place _ accepted, mr speaker. there is no place for— accepted, mr speaker. there is no place for racism in britain and the government i lead is living proof of that _ government i lead is living proof of that in_ government i lead is living proof of that. ., , ~ , that. in november the prime minister acce ted a that. in november the prime minister accepted a cash _ that. in november the prime minister accepted a cash donation _ that. in november the prime minister accepted a cash donation to _ that. in november the prime minister accepted a cash donation to the - that. in november the prime minister accepted a cash donation to the tune | accepted a cash donation to the tune of 515.000 _ accepted a cash donation to the tune of £15.000 from _ accepted a cash donation to the tune of £15,000 from frank— accepted a cash donation to the tune of £15,000 from frank hester- accepted a cash donation to the tune of £15,000 from frank hester for- accepted a cash donation to the tune | of £15,000 from frank hester for the use of— of £15,000 from frank hester for the use of his _ of £15,000 from frank hester for the use of his helicopter. _ of £15,000 from frank hester for the use of his helicopter. will— of £15,000 from frank hester for the use of his helicopter. will he - use of his helicopter. will he reimburse _ use of his helicopter. will he reimburse him? _ use of his helicopter. will he reimburse him? yes- use of his helicopter. will he reimburse him? yes or- use of his helicopter. will he reimburse him? yes or no? i use of his helicopter. will he i reimburse him? yes or no? no, use of his helicopter. will he reimburse him? yes or no? no, mr seaker. reimburse him? yes or no? no, mr speaker- i— reimburse him? yes or no? no, mr

speaker- i am _ reimburse him? yes or no? no, mr speaker. i am pleased _ reimburse him? yes or no? no, mr speaker. i am pleased that - reimburse him? yes or no? no, mr speaker. i am pleased that the - speaker. i am pleased that the gentleman is supporting a party that represents one of the most diverse governments in this country's history. — governments in this country's history, led by this country's first british— history, led by this country's first british asian prime minister. the 'eo ard british asian prime minister. the jeepardy for _ british asian prime minister. tie: jeopardy for rishi sunak british asian prime minister. ti9: jeopardy for rishi sunak is british asian prime minister. ti9 jeopardy for rishi sunak is twofold. first, on the money, after saying the comments were racist, can he justify holding onto the money? then his leadership. his critics say he is buffeted by events, weak and inconsistent. after the guardian reported frank hester�*s alleged comments, he said he accepted he was rude about diane abbott in a private meeting several years ago, but his criticism had nothing to do with her gender or colour of skin. another question... if gender or colour of skin. another question- - -_ gender or colour of skin. another auestion... ~ , :, question... if mr hester said today i would question... if mr hester said today i would like _ question... if mr hester said today i would like to _ question... if mr hester said today i would like to give _ question... if mr hester said today i would like to give you _ question... if mr hester said today i would like to give you another . question... if mr hester said today| i would like to give you another £10 million, would you take it? fin i would like to give you another £10 million, would you take it?- million, would you take it? on the basis we don't _ million, would you take it? on the basis we don't think _ million, would you take it? on the basis we don't think he _ million, would you take it? on the basis we don't think he was - million, would you take it? on the basis we don't think he was racist, yes _ basis we don't think he was racist, yes hir— basis we don't think he was racist, es. ~ . basis we don't think he was racist, es, �* , , ., " , yes. mr hester said he like rishi sunak and _ yes. mr hester said he like rishi sunak and his _ yes. mr hester said he like rishi sunak and his leadership, - yes. mr hester said he like rishi sunak and his leadership, but i yes. mr hester said he like rishi - sunak and his leadership, but others in the party don't want the money. i in the party don't want the money. i would think about the company i kept

and give that money back. i have to give you my view, rather than what the party should do. m5 give you my view, rather than what the party should do.— the party should do. ms abbott is not sittin: the party should do. ms abbott is not sitting as _ the party should do. ms abbott is not sitting as a _ the party should do. ms abbott is not sitting as a labour _ the party should do. ms abbott is not sitting as a labour mp - the party should do. ms abbott is not sitting as a labour mp of- the party should do. ms abbott is not sitting as a labour mp of the | not sitting as a labour mp of the comment she made the irish, jewish and traveller people were not subject to racism all their lives. she has apologised. she was not given the opportunity to ask rishi sunak a question herself and it is reported the alleged comments to the police unit for mps' safety. our chief political correspondent henry zeffman is at westmister. henry, how much pressure is rishi sunak still under to give back that £10 million from frank hester? it is certainly a difficult issue for rishi sunak. we so that prime minister's questions, which dominated a very acrimonious session indeed. this morning, andy street, the conservative mayor of the west midlands said if the donations had been to him, he would have given them back. in the last few moments,

them back. in the last few moments, the scottish conservative party have suggested that the uk conservative party, to whom these donations were made, should carefully review them. that is an interesting escalation. so far what you haven't had is a clamour from so far what you haven't had is a clamourfrom rishi sunak�*s mps and ministers, certainly publicly at least. for now, it seems his position he will not hand the donations back could help. the lingering political risk for rishi sunak is on how long it took him or indeed his government to get to a position of where they were willing to save that frank hester�*s alleged comments were racist. a lot of conservative mps i have spoken to are uneasy about what that says about the government and rishi sunak�*s politicaljudgment. about the government and rishi sunak's politicaljudgment. sunak's political 'udgment. henry, thank ou sunak's political 'udgment. henry, thankyouvery— sunak's politicaljudgment. henry, thank you very much. _ now, could the economy be on its way out of the shallow recession that it's fallen into? gdp — or gross domestic product, a measure of all the economic activity in the country — grew slightly by 0.2%

injanuary, according to the latest official figures. our chief economics correspondent dharshini david is here. thank you. are things going to get better, because between high interest rates and costs all round it has been a tricky couple of years. but things are looking a bit better this month. january is largely down to a rise in retail sales. my went to visit small business in south london to find out exactly what is driving that. everything we buy is more expensive. designing, producing and selling his own leather goods is painstaking work for noureddine. but profits aren't in the bag. like many, he's had to run an unusually big january sale to shift christmas stock. with the sale injanuary we need to make big sale compared to the year before. because usually before we do just like 20% off or 30% off on the sale.

but this year we have even the product for 70%. for many retailers, slashing prices after a disappointing festive season paid off. that boost and a rebound in construction after a damp end to 2023 pushed up activity gdp by 0.2% in the month ofjanuary. these are initial numbers and they could change, but they give fresh hope after this. the dip in gdp over the second half of last year typically defined as a recession. today's data suggests we're taking a tentative step out of that, but we'll need numbers from february and march to be sure. even so, in noureddine's workshop in morocco, there'sjust one person making bags where they used to be 11. like many consumer facing businesses, they're doing less well than prior to the pandemic. before covid people buy without even think twice. now they need to think

a lot to buy something. renewed growth isn't just money in tills, but means more customers can shelve worries about stretching to the basics and indulge in life's luxuries again. and dharshini, dare we say, green shoots are visible? we are all desperate for those first signs of a proper spring. if you look back and take into account inflation and population growth, we are over £100 worse off each compared to where we were two years ago. the good news is, there is hope on the horizon. remember, those increases in interest rates appear to be over and the majority of mortgage holders who were exposed to that, the impact may be easing off soon. prices are rising more slower than the past and wages have overtaken that inflation. consumers

really drove the downturn, they are likely to be behind the upturn as well. how that will add, we'll have to wait and see, but growth has been a fraction over the last 15 years of what it was before. we are being pretty sure change and we have to find a way of sorting it.— find a way of sorting it. thank you very much- _ police say they've had more than a thousand phone calls from members of the public worried about what has happened at a funeral directors in hull. detectives say they are investigating what they call a 'truly horrific incident.�* two people have been released on bail after being held on suspicion of preventing a lawful and decent burial, and fraud. nick garnett is in hull — what have people been saying? what are people saying to you about this? :, :_ what are people saying to you about this? :, :, , :, , :, this? today flowers have been laid here aaain this? today flowers have been laid here again as _ this? today flowers have been laid here again as the _ this? today flowers have been laid here again as the police _ this? today flowers have been laid here again as the police continue i here again as the police continue their operation inside the chapel of rest. we have been speaking to a woman called louisa millington whose husband's funeral was handled here. she didn't want to be filmed but she

was happy to tell you what she said. her husband carl died suddenly in november, he was 42 and was cremated in december. she received his ashes a few weeks later and his daughter went to buy an urn for the ashes. carl was a 12 stone man. she bought a much larger and that would hold the ashes of 25 stone. when the ashes arrived there were so many they wouldn't fit in. she doesn't know if they were his ashes. she has just paid £500 for a ring to commemorate him that is made out of his ashes. she said she doesn't know whether that isn't made from his ashes. she has been told by the police to pass forward details about what he was wearing, whatjewellery he may have had on and whether or not he had any tattoos. this is a staggeringly awful case and police say their concern is for everyone involved and the family stay at the heart of everything they are doing.

nick garnett, thank you. failed asylum seekers are to be offered up to £3,000 to move to rwanda voluntarilty, under a new home office scheme. the plan is aimed at migrants and foreign criminals with no legal right to remain in the uk, but who can't be sent back to their home country because it's not deemed safe. the first minister of wales has attacked borisjohnson's handling of the covid pandemic, saying he was like a football manager who was largely absent. mark drakeford was giving evidence at the covid inquiry, which is currently focussed on how the pandemic was dealt with by the authorities in wales. hywel griffith has the latest from cardiff. it was the emergency that spread to every corner of the country. when coronavirus reached wales, it was up to the welsh labour government to respond, to protect the nhs, and take unprecedented control over daily life. mark drakeford says his government hadn't expected to have so much responsibility until days before

the first lockdown. but he insists ministers had done what they could. for what we actually faced, we were not as well prepared as we needed to be. the enemy we faced was not the enemy we were expecting. for months, businesses shut down, families locked down for longer in wales, and the relations with the uk government clearly broke down. mr drakeford says he repeatedly called to meet borisjohnson but had no response. the inquiry�*s heard there was a feeling in downing street the welsh government was making decisions just to be different. i had no motivation of any sort to make decisions for the sake of being different. and i think my effort through the whole pandemic is to try and find better ways of coming together, to make better informed decisions. and i don't think the prime minister or the secretary of state could offer you a single specific instance to justify the charges

that they have made. the path mr drakeford took truly was different. in the autumn of 2020, he announced a wales only firebreak lockdown. while he won a reputation for caution, the inquiry will want to know whether at several points he could and should have acted sooner. the questions come just as mr drakeford prepares to leave the political stage. next week, he'll stand down as first minister. today gives him a chance to frame his legacy. hwyl griffith, bbc news, cardiff. a new land route has been used to deliver six lorries of food to northern gaza for the first time in three weeks, according to the un. amid fears over a looming famine, a boat carrying 200 tonnes of food left cyprus for the palestinian territory. also overnight there's been more violence in the west bank as our correspondent

yolande knell reports. you might find some of the details in this report distressing. shaky video shows a palestinian boy with a lit firework. he was fatally shot. gunfire. rami hamdan al—halhouli was just 12. with tensions running high for ramadan in eastjerusalem, he was killed by an israeli border policeman. and today a far right minister praised his action, saying it was a disgrace that israeli police were investigating the officer. translation: the combatant comes and does exactly - what we expect from him. it's simply the biggest scandal that they invite him here for questioning. overnight, there were other palestinians killed. two here, one aged just 16, in a village nearjerusalem.

then this morning there was a stabbing at this israeli military checkpoint. israeli police said they shot and killed the attacker, a 15—year—old palestinian boy. ramadan is always a sensitive time in the israel — palestinian conflict. but this year, with no truce agreed in gaza, there is a particular worry that trouble could spread. a lot depends now on what happens on the ground. in the shadow of famine, the un says israel's military opened a new route to allow this aid convoy to reach northern gaza. there have also been new airlifts to try to alleviate the deep humanitarian crisis. meanwhile a charity ship carrying 200 tonnes of food is making its way across the mediterranean from cyprus. a newjetty is being set up so that aid can start to come in by sea. but the un says lorries are the fastest way to get aid to those who need it. israel is continuing to strike in gaza.

after more than five months, the war rages on with devastating effects. yolande knell, bbc news, jerusalem. the time is 13.16. our top story this afternoon. the prime minister tells the commons that alleged comments made by conservative party donor frank hester were wrong and racist. and former spice girl mel b tells us how she's using the tough times in her life to help others. coming up on bbc news. still unbeaten, jannik sinner�*s yet to lose in singles so far this year. he is into the quarterfinals at indian wells after an 18th consecutive win. we'll have the latest from california. some women who pay to pay to freeze their eggs are being misled about their chances of having a baby — according to a fertility charity.

more and more women are choosing to freeze their eggs, but bbc analysis has found that dozens of clinics offering the service privately may have breached advertising guidance which says they mustn't give false or misleading information. anna collinson reports. going into the operating theatre, that's when it gets really real. rowe is about to have her eggs retrieved. the idea, to freeze them at a younger, more fertile point and use them when she's ready to have a baby. i'm an absolute realist going into this, and i know that freezing my eggs does not guarantee me success of having a child in the future. under sedation, a long, thin needle is carefully inserted into each ovary to retrieve her eggs. they're frozen and placed in storage. initially, we're just doing one injection... there's been a boom in egg freezing for non—medical reasons, an idea propelled by celebrities.

i thought what i was doing, right, was showing young lassies and young women that there's, like, alternatives, you know, that we don'tjust have to rush into things with potentially the wrong bloke. single at 39, natalie decided to freeze her eggs in 2020, but the science teacher struggled to understand what her chances of having a baby were. it's just purely now based on trust and hope rather than data and research. i feel it was a journey that i felt very alone on. i don't think i expected, you know, the financial toll. honestly, it was probably the biggest hit. it was just trying to find the money from anywhere to make this happen. fertility clinic websites can be a key source of free information, but analysis by the bbc found a1% of clinics which offer private egg freezing in the uk may have breached advertising guidance. we found some clinics are prominently displaying attractive sounding success rates, but these numbers only cover one stage of the egg freezing journey.

the chances of going on to have a baby are far lower, and that isn't always made clear. we shared our findings with the fertility network. to invest in egg freezing, a massive financial investment, what a key decision in your life. i feel very angry for patients because they are being misled by this level of information. fertility experts told us patients should get personalised information about their chances of success at a consultation, but stress websites must be transparent. the ability to freeze eggs... the uk's fertility regulator is clear. the responsibility to inform lies with clinics. freezing eggs for medical reasons is very different to freezing for social reasons. and as a regulator, we are concerned about the success rates. we are concerned about the information women are getting when they're considering this process. natalie is one of the few who's come back to use her eggs, and now has a baby boy.

the whole journey cost more than £18,000. holding huxley for the first time, i mean, you'rejust, you're in awe that this baby has come from a frozen egg. i have been really, really fortunate and i'm forever grateful for that. anna collinson, bbc news. you can watch anna collinson s exclusive film ? egg freezing and me ? on bbc iplayer now. in rugby union, wales' george north has announced he will retire from international rugby after the six nations on saturday. his appearance in cardiff against italy will be his 121st and final appearance for the national team, his first came 1a years ago. north is wales' third most capped player in history and currently the leading try scorer in international rugby currently playing the sport. the quality of bus services across england varies a lot from region to region, according to new research. whilst 80% of passengers say

they are satisfied overall, many feel let down by waiting times and reliability. a bus users charity told the bbc that following years of cuts, not enough people have access to the services they need. our transport correspondent katy austin has been talking to passengers in the best — and worst — rated areas. on the number 23 between beverley and hull, plenty of regular passengers. so, what do they think of their bus service? how often do you get the bus? every day. are they always on time? no. laughing. no. but do they get you where you need to go? yeah, yeah. today i could not get on the 121 bus because it did not show up. now i am late for work. so if they turn up, they're good? yes. when transport focus asked people how satisfied they were with their bus journeys, east yorkshire came top with 90%. they were asked about things like value for money, punctuality, the bus stop, and the driver. over the past couple of years,

more than £1 billion of government money has been allocated towards trying to make bus services around england, outside of london, better after years of falling passenger numbers and cuts to services — made much worse by the pandemic. here, the council and bus companies say they have put their share of the money towards more evening and sunday services. i think it is a very good service, yes. some of the villages would have been cut off without it, you know? yeah, i'm getting the little local bus, the 527, which is only three a day now where there used to be one every hour. i am not saying they are all late, but there is quite a lot. you know, they do run late, or sometimes they will just cut them out. at the bottom of the results table — west yorkshire with a 73% satisfaction rating. people in huddersfield weren't surprised. there has been a lot of late buses, a lot of cancellations, and a lot of people are dissatisfied generally because they can't get to college on time. i live in a little village which is seldom served, so we could do with more. the region's mayor admits there is work to do.

i am a bus user myself, i know there are too many delays, there's not many options, there are too many cuts to the services. we have been building bus priority lanes so buses don't get stuck in traffic, we have also been recruiting and running courses for more bus drivers. a decision on whether to bring buses in west yorkshire back under local control is due this week. a bus users' group says around the country services have continued to be cut, leaving too many people without a bus at all. without buses, some people find themselves excluded from things like employment, education, health care provision, and even just going to visit their family and friends. delays caused by congestion were a problem issue in transport focus�*s research, while the £2 bus fare cap

led to value for money scores. the passenger watchdog says, wherever they live, people need to see the improvements they have been promised. katy austin, bbc news. she rose to internationalfame as one of the spice girls — but despite selling millions of records and making millions of pounds, the singer mel b later found herself penniless and living back with her mother in a bungalow in leeds. she says she's now out of an abusive relationship, and is hoping to use her experience to help others. charlotte gallagher has been to meet her. # so here's the story from a to z...#. mel b made millions from the spice girls, but a few years ago, after leaving an abusive marriage, she was left with almost nothing and had to move in with her mum in leeds. her ex denies the allegations. it's embarrassing. it's shameful. i'm all about girl power. yet look at what i'm just leaving, which is a complete girl powerless situation. i was doing a spice girls tour in 2019 here. and i lived with my mum because i wasn'tjust emotionally and physically abused, it was all the financial abuse too. i didn't realise that i didn't actually have enough, as much money as i thought i had.

so i had to literally eat humble pie, live with my mum. and my mum was the kind of person that would say, "oh, you've left him now, you're fine." but that couldn't be further from the truth. obviously, any situation is better than being with your abuser, but when you've left that kind of abusive situation, you have to... it's like starting all over again. has it helped, moving back to leeds? definitely. my mum is one of seven, so i'm surrounded by friends, family, aunts, uncles, nephews, nieces, the whole nine yards. and it's, you know, leeds is beautiful. i've got like a great park walk. and what was it like getting that house, buying a house? oh, yeah. so i didn't really think that that would ever be on the cards for me. i mean, even though i've been looking at houses on and off for the last couple of years, but knowing i didn't have the money to really afford it, you know, ijust put my head down and worked and lived frugally and hence i've been able to buy my own house. but this is like five, six, seven years on when i

didn't really have much. so you're saying you were shopping in aldi? yeah, and i still love shopping in aldi and lidl. i don't think i'm ever going to stop doing that! you're still so leeds! yeah, i'm still leeds. i'm still a leeds girl, at the end of the day. a big part of mel's life now is campaigning on behalf of other domestic violence survivors, as the patron of women's aid. ijust bring awareness and i talk about abuse and i talk about what i've been through. and i'm the voice of all the other survivors out there that don't have a voice, that can't be heard, or can't get their point across, especially when it comes to things like trying to change the justice system and trying to enforce more laws that are more supportive towards people that are coming out of an abusive situation. # this time, you gotta take it easy...#. it's now 30 years since the spice girls first auditioned. and if you're sat with one of them, well, you have to ask this. do you think there's

the will in the group to get back together as a five? i think there always has been. there always is, yeah. it's just a case of logistically getting it going. and you're still friends, you still got your whatsapp group. yeah. and you still support each other. victoria beckham's doing your wedding dress? well, yeah, i might have a few wedding dresses! i've decided yet, but she's said yeah. charlotte gallagher, bbc news. a rocket has burst into flames shortly after lift—off in western japan. the unmanned rocket was owned by space one, a company trying to becomejapan s first private firm to put a satellite into orbit. it was carrying a small government tested satellite. now giant redwoods are the world's largest trees — growing up to 300 feet and living for two thousand years. well researchers have discovered they're now thriving here in britain — apparently they rather like the climate — and there are now many more of them in the uk than there

are in their native california. our science editor rebecca morelle reports. they're becoming a standout feature of our forests. giant redwoods are the biggest trees on the planet. these native californian wonders are fast growing, and can lock up vast amounts of carbon. and now they're looming large across the landscape in the uk. well, these giant redwoods really live up to their name. they are suitably huge. so here are a couple of questions. how many of these trees do you think there are in their native californian region? well, the answer is only about 80,000. and how many giant redwoods do you think there are here in the uk? well, you might be surprised to learn that there's an estimated 500,000, and that number is growing. these giant redwoods were planted in wakehurst in sussex about 150 years ago, and it turns out that the damp

british weather is good for them. so where they grow in california is cooler and moister than you would typically envisage california and we have a reasonably similar climate here. it's very wet. they need the moisture to grow. so here's the next question. how high do you think these trees can grow? well, the answer is up to 90 metres tall, but this one's not quite there yet. the team is using lasers to measure the trees. this one's 46 metres tall. they can also calculate the tree's weight and see how much carbon is being soaked up. they have about 10 to 15 tonnes of carbon stored in their tissues compared to the largest tree in california, which has about 250 tonnes of carbon stored in it. they're quite small, but you know, these could get as big. at havering country park in essex, an avenue of giant redwoods once provided a grand entrance for a stately home that's no longer here. these trees were the

ultimate status symbol. i see them all over the place and they pop up in the kind of most weird and wonderful places. i think partly they have this sort of iconic status because they are the biggest organisms on earth and they're some of the oldest organisms on earth. final question, how long do you think these trees can live? well, the answer to that is a very long time. more than 2,000 years. even in the fog, the uk's giant redwoods are hard to miss, but we still need to find out how well they'll fit into our forests and to see just how big they'll grow. rebecca morelle, bbc news. time for a look at the weather. tomasz schafernaker is here. well the trees like the mild and wet weather and that is how it has been in the last couple of weeks. they