this is bbc news. i'm ben brown live in westminster on a historic day. the eyes to the right, 498, the noes to the left, 414. the eyes have it, the eyes have it. mps have voted overwhelmingly in favour of giving theresa may the power to begin the formal process for leaving the european union. two labour mps have resigned from the shadow front bench to vote against the party whip and oppose the bill. we'll be here with the latest developments. also coming up... at the inquests into the deaths of 30 britons killed in the tunisia terror attack, one teenager described the scene, as his brother, uncle and grandfather were shot dead. donald trump's national security adviser has warned iran is on notice

after terror ran tested a ballistic missile over the weekend. and the new attempt to overhaul real fears will continue in may after train operators admitted that buying the right ticket can be baffling. —— overhaul railfares. good evening from westminster. mps have voted overwhelmingly to allow theresa may to get brexit negotiations under way. they backed the government's european union bill, supported by the labour leadership, by 498 votes to 114. an overwhelming government majority. the scottish national party and the liberal democrat leadership oppose the bill. several labour mps opposed

it, also the former chancellor of the exchequer, ken clarke rebelled against his government. the bill now faces further scrutiny in the commons and the house of lords before it can become law. this was the moment, the result became clear. the ayes to the right, 498. the noes to the left, 114. cheering. the ayes to the right, 498, the noes to the left, 114. so the ayes have it, the ayes have it. jeremy corbyn suffered more

resignations from his shadow cabinet this evening — this time over his decision to impose a three—line whip on his mps to support the government's bill on triggering the article 50 eu withdrawal process. 12 labour front bench as rebelled against him and have not yet resigned. let's get more reaction to the vote. i'm joined now by labour's rushanara ali who voted against the bill this evening. dominic raab from the conservatives who campaigned to leave the eu and voted in favour of tonight's bill. and alex salmond. you must be pleased with the vote, mr raab? an overwhelming majority of mps voted to start the negotiations, and yes there are procedural steps still to go but i think it sets a clear

message to the unelected house of lords that they should not block this. i am looking forward to the stage where we can put some of this haggling behind us and forjay strength of unity and purpose to get the very best deal from the diplomacy of these negotiations for every corner of the country and every corner of the country and every citizen. alex salmond, you had an amendment tonight which would have derailed the bill, and was overwhelmingly defeated. are you going to stop the haggling? only 330 mps voted against it, only half of the house of commons. i would not celebrate too soon. next week, there will be closer votes with the amendments, and the labour party will hopefully unite and behave like an opposition, holding the government to account. in terms of what happened today, this is an act of collective madness, probably best described by a former prime minister. today they are ringing the bells but tomorrow they will be wringing their hands. but this is what the nation decided in a

referendum. there is a mandate across the uk, not scotland, but there is a mandate for coming out of there is a mandate for coming out of the union across the uk, but now mandate for coming out of the single market, with the cost ofjobs and living standards that will entail, and there is certainly no mandate to do it with this government, that is clueless, not publishing the white paper until tomorrow. i was joking with david davis that the ink is still running on the white paper, that his house patch cock the preparations have been. why did you vote against the party leadership and jeremy corbyn? i made the decision to vote against because i believe it is not in our national interests to leave the single market and the customs union. i do not think hard right it will serve the country well and that is the most important thing for me. it is not about rebelling against the party leader. frankly, whati about rebelling against the party leader. frankly, what i am concerned about is what is in the best interests of my constituents and the country and i do not think that

losing hundreds of thousands ofjobs and damaging our economy is the way forward. theresa may has got a mandate for brexit. but we have every right to lobby to account and personally i think we should have had a free vote. there are many collea g u es had a free vote. there are many colleagues who were torn about the best response. in my conscience, i felt the best thing to do was to vote against triggering article 50. but you leadership, jeremy corbyn and sir kier starmer, he said that labour party is about democracy and democracy is about listening to the will of the people. yes, we accept the decision to leave the european union. the question now is that the speech that theresa may made, saying we will leave the single market and the customs union, this is playing russian roulette with our financial interests, with jobs,

russian roulette with our financial interests, withjobs, potentially millions ofjobs. i know100,000 jobs will go in london in the financial services, and these are jobs that my constituents do. ijust don't think that is what people voted for. that is what we had to express by voting against it. dominic raab, do you accept the right of mps, some mps, to express their personal conscience on this? of course, and i know what an incredible conviction politician my colleagues here are. obviously, we wa nt colleagues here are. obviously, we want to be a strong trading partner with europe and the global leader when it comes to trade. that had the backing of the public by three —— one. in scotland, there was also clear support. —— 3—1. i do not want to continue the haggling at home, i

wa nt to continue the haggling at home, i want to start serious diplomacy abroad. this shows that we can go into this negotiation, with self confidence and ambition, and from my point of view, i want to try to bridge some of the gaps and heal some of the wounds because we need unity of purpose. the country voted as one country, not different constituencies, not different nations. i understand alex salmond's point of view but i think the whole country wants to see us get behind the negotiations and get the best deal that we can. the problem with people like dominic, which is why they only have one mp in scotland, is that he thinks mp is a county of england. scotland is a country, not a county. but it was a uk wide referendum. yes, and scotland voted to remain overwhelmingly. the majority for remainer is even higher i'iow majority for remainer is even higher now in scotland. nicola sturgeon has put forward a compromise position which says that theresa may lets scotland stayed with him the single market. that is a huge compromise to make. that is total monsoons. next

time you meet jean—claude juncker, you have a conversation, like the one that i had the week before christmas that there is far more sympathy and support across the european continent for scotland than there is for this hard brexit tory government. but the spanish would not allow that, would they? the proposal is to have scotland within the single market as part of efta. and you think the spanish would agree with that? why not, if it was proposed. the formal spanish position, as opposed to how it is sometimes presented, as aggrieved within europe, spain has nothing to say about that. none of the countries in europe would agree to that. i would say, to the people of scotland, i understand, like others that voted remain, other regions and nations, let's come together. there are huge opportunities here for

scottish exporters. for trade, to get the best deal. i think i would like to come together with mps that did not share our view, and get the best deal. rushanara ali, the reality of this vote tonight is that brexit is on stoppable. this will be triggered by the end of the month and then the negotiations will begin and then the negotiations will begin and that is it, isn't it? that is why i could not vote to trigger article 50. once you have done that, there is no turning back. what i am deeply concerned about, and many of my colleagues are, whichever way they voted, they did not give theresa may a bank cheque, is what the negotiation will involve. —— a blank cheque. they are concerned aboutjobs blank cheque. they are concerned about jobs and the blank cheque. they are concerned aboutjobs and the hard—won rights, and this could lead to a race to the bottom on employment rights and many more. many people in dominic's party never supported improvements in

labour standards, women's rights and much else. this is deeply dangerous for the country and the context is after brexit what we've seen is a divided country. dominic is right, alex is right, we need to look at how we bring the country together. i do notjust how we bring the country together. i do not just increasing how we bring the country together. i do notjust increasing those divisions with opposition to article 50? -- are you notjust increasing those divisions. what we are calling for is that the government looks at the amendments that are coming in, looks at the response from the house of lords and their contribution, and that we generally focused on the national interest, our economic interests, ensuring that what theresa may does is truly in our economic interests and in the interest of the country rather than in the interest of the conservative party. that is correct, and that includes listening to the nation and to scotland, and to a first minister who unlike the prime minister has a democratic mandate. surely dominic does not have the arrogance to believe that he knows and understands the feelings of the people of scotland better than the

scottish parliament and the scottish first minister. it is time for the tory party to start treating scotland with respect. do you understand the feelings of the people of scotland ?|j understand the feelings of the people of scotland? i think we need to be sympathetic to the feelings of people who have anxiety about this. the truth is that the commons has overwhelmingly voted for this. something like three quarters of labour mps have been reassured by what we have said about rights. but ido what we have said about rights. but i do accept what alex says, about negotiation. that has been formalised, and the truth is that i'm making the case for unity of purpose, to get the best deal. but only one mp from scotland, your own mp, back to you. even the labour mp for scotland back the snp amendment. one single mp from scotland should have a veto over the whole nation? the truth is, your interest is in a very narrow question. you are interested in facilitating another

referendum which the scottish people do not want. that is not true either. if you want to avoid another referendum, accept the compromise proposal to keep scotland within the single market place. rushanara ali, another i have been out to constituencies that have voted to leave, talking to people who voted to leave, they say get on with it, why is it taking so long? —— whenever i have been out. they do not understand why we have to wait two years. you are one of the people holding it up. i am not. it is the prime minister who refused to allow us prime minister who refused to allow us to have this vote. it took a brave woman, gena miller, to take the government to court before we had this vote. it is the government that has been responsible for this delay. i would appreciate it if you establish the facts. we had to debate on article 50 before christmas. there has been plenty of pretext not to do this. but it is true that at the government had not appealed to the supreme court, this could all have been sorted out? the

arrogance of the government. the supreme court ruling was quite important because it narrowed the focus of the legislation. it also made it clear that we voted as one country. kier starmer said it was a waste of time and money. dominic raab believes in parliamentary democracy but as prime minister tried to stop us having a vote. outrageous. we had the vote before christmas. that was a labour motion, a motion from labour. this post truth politics is spreading. they have been spending millions of pounds of the public's money trying to stop a vote in parliament and now they are trying to ram through a bill because they have not thought about the consequences ofjob losses in london and scotland and across the country. they shall rue this day. the truth is that a lot of the people trying to derail or frustrate these negotiations are facilitating what they call the hard brexit that nobody wants to see. the prime minister wants to see it. kier

starmer has said that this is not ha rd starmer has said that this is not hard brexit. what we need now is unity of purpose. i am pro that and i understand the concerns of remain voters, but it will need two sites to come together. and at the end of the two years, what sort of brexit do you think it will be? obviously, the negotiations are still going on. wait and see! he has no idea! theresa may made it clear that her post—brexit vision of britain as a self—governing democracy, a close friend of the eu, and a global leader in free trade. we have 3—1 the public behind this. there is even interest in scotland, that alex salmond might want to point out. 70% of the sunday times for europe on sunday. everyone has rallied behind a national effort to get the best deal. is it not time for some unity on this? the way to get unity is to

listen to people and accept a proposal from the scottish government and others in an amendment, and get a united position. it is significant that every time dominic is asked a specific question the answer is, we are hoping for the best and we will see what happens and we will cross our fingers see what happens and we will cross ourfingers and see what happens and we will cross our fingers and hope for the best. that is not good enough. i am paraphrasing you, dominic, you make it up as you go along. that is exactly your inability to answer any detailed question. have some flexibility, and engage with it. after having insulted the rest of europe for the last six months, they are having a happy negotiation with 27 other countries? it is going to be an abject, unnecessary disaster, and a self—inflicted wound from this tory government. you may wish it will be but we have a competent prime minister. they have accepted some proposals. can you not see that there could be some upside to leaving the european union, as outlined by dominic raab?|j

leaving the european union, as outlined by dominic raab? i am not objecting against us leaving, i am arguing for the best deal. i do not believe that leaving the single market, costing hundreds of thousands ofjobs market, costing hundreds of thousands of jobs and market, costing hundreds of thousands ofjobs and damaging our economy is right. theresa may has not given us any idea, any sense of how she is going to do this. but how will we stay in the single market? the amendments are important, the discussion and debate that happens next week, and whether the government accepts those amendments will be critical to whether we have a compromise. you do not accept... it isa a compromise. you do not accept... it is a deal that we can support. but when people voted in the referendum, you do not accept that they were overwhelmingly voting to control the free movement of labour, meaning leaving the single market? well, that question was not posed to them. the question was yes or no, and in the conservative party's ma nifesto, and in the conservative party's manifesto, there was a commitment to to remain in the single market. the fa ct to remain in the single market. the fact is that the public did not vote

to be poorer and lose theirjobs, and it is the prime minister... but whenever i talk to leave voters, they talk about immigration. and thatis they talk about immigration. and that is a serious concern and many of my colleagues have expressed the will of their constituents by voting to trigger article 50, and i appreciate that that is the dilemma that we are in as a party. and it is very difficult. there is no denying that this is a difficult set of circumstances for many of my collea g u es circumstances for many of my colleagues and for my party, but the fa ct colleagues and for my party, but the fact is, many of those colleagues who spoke over the last 24 hours talk about the importance of protecting jobs and rights and protecting jobs and rights and protecting our national interests, and we are all united in that effort. when ken clarke made that speech in the commons yesterday, one of your conservative colleagues, the only one who voted against the bill, it was quite a powerful speech in which he talked about alice in wonderland, the dream of free trade deals with all these countries around the world but essentially, he said it was madness, like alice in

wonderland. and ken was in a minority of one among conservatives. i think it was almost three quarters of labour mps who joins together. there is a positive vision, a 6000 word speech that will be turned into a white paper tomorrow. we have the positive vision and we need unity of purpose. the voices coming out of the eu, contrary to what alex said, whether it is the spanish foreign minister or whoever, is that we should be looking for a win—win. i will be looking to do that, and not scupper the process.|j will be looking to do that, and not scupper the process. i will give alex salmond the last word. scupper the process. i will give alex salmond the last wordlj scupper the process. i will give alex salmond the last word. i think we have finally met the hosts of the tea party. there is no answers to the detailed questions. you're quite right, next week there will be a detailed amendment and the calibre of the government will be judged by how they respond to these amendments. it will never be good enough for you. dominic, you need to respond to what been offered. you have been offered a compromise. you

either accept it or you reject it.|j would not say that you are the enemy andi would not say that you are the enemy and i am the enemy of the people. we have all had the last word. thank you so much for being with us this evening and giving us your instant reaction to that vote in the commons. let's get more reaction from inside the palace of westminster. vicki young is there. it has felt like a significant night tonight. we did know that it would be an overwhelming result in favour of the government, but when i walked m, of the government, but when i walked in, borisjohnson was just in front of me saying, i must not miss this one, i havejust seen of me saying, i must not miss this one, i have just seen along campaigning brexiteer punching the airand saying, yes, campaigning brexiteer punching the air and saying, yes, we are leaving. for people who have campaigned for this over decades, this is a big moment, a first significant step on the road to the uk leaving the european union. as far as theresa may's timetable goes, she is getting

it her own way. it has been a difficult night for labour. we have heard mps over the last couple of days wrestling with their conscience, asking what they are here to do. i beat you to represent their constituents, many of whom voted to leave, or should they go with their conscience? most labour mps on the remain side of the argument. it has led to problems for jeremy corbyn, who ordered his mps not to block brexit. there would be a problem with undermining democracy, as he sees it, if they went against the result of that referendum. earlier, ispoke went against the result of that referendum. earlier, i spoke to labour's brexit spokesman, sir kier starmer. the decision to leave the eu was taken on the 23rd ofjune last year. this decision allows the prime minister to start the process but all that has happened tonight is that we have allowed the bill to go to the committee stage. we are about to the committee stage. we are about to look at an amendment and this is the real battle, because the mandate

was a mandate to leave the eu. the terms on which we leave, the new relationship with the eu is the battle but we have got to have. and thatis battle but we have got to have. and that is why the labour party has put down amendments to say that you must produce a white paper before that starts. that has been conceded. you must report back in two years, so we can check how you are getting on and we must have a meaningful vote at the end, we must be able to see the deal you have reached to make sure it is the right deal. the real battle is not whether we are leaving, that was determined last year. the real battle is the future relationship with the eu and that is the battle that starts next week in the battle that starts next week in the committee stage. but that is tricky, with the numbers that there are in the house of commons. it is tricky to get concessions from the government on all of this. can we clarify that you will still back a third reading if you do not get those amendments? you say it is tricky, but in fairness, we have said from the start that we must have a plan for a white paper, which

has been conceded before we voted on the amendment. we have said we need to have reporting back, and the secretary of state has indicated that he will be amenable to that and we have argued for a vote at the end. the prime minister has said that there will be a vote at the end and we are trying to narrow that to make sure it is a meaningful vote. in terms of the parliamentary scrutiny, to make sure parliament has a proper role, we are achieving a lot of what we have set out to achieve and we have gone a long way already. in terms of the negotiation once that starts, will there be other votes throughout the process or will it bea it be a matter of theresa may doing a deal and then presenting it to parliament at the end? she has said that if parliament does not accept the deal, we will leave without a deal. reporting back is very

important, so that we know what is going on and we can question the secretary of state and the prime minister at regular intervals. i think that should be every two months. the reason that we have not got the amendment down is that it is not the right time. i do not want this parliament to be the last parliament to vote on the deal. that is where the fight is going. this is all about making sure that we have the right result at the end of the day. the decision to leave was made last year and this is about the terms on which we leave. we have gained a lot in terms of what we have been asking for. labour saying that tonight is about the process, and what we will turn to now is the kind of deal that we can get. there is a lot of talk about this final vote for parliament, the vote promised by the government, but many mps from labour, liberal democrat, snp and stories, are talking about the timing of that. they want a chance, after theresa may has done the deal, they want her to come back to parliament, offered a deal to parliament, offered a deal to parliament and if they do not agree with that, rather than fall out without any deal, they want the option of sending theresa may back to brussels to try to get something better. so from —— for now, theresa

may is certainly getting away but there are difficulties to come, if she trickles reign triggers article 50 before the summer. today we heard from our most senior ambassador to the eu in brussels for many years and he said the first thing that is going to happen is that everyone is going to happen is that everyone is going to happen is that everyone is going to argue about what they are arguing about. it is not clear what will be discussed and the big thing on the table, first of all, will be the brexit bill that our eu partners will present. they are talking a 40— 60 billion euros, as what they might charge the uk because of the liability we have. the headache will start for the prime minister, but she is at the moment, as you would expect, talking tough about what she hopes to get out of it. saying that she wants to get free access to the single market, she wants to have as few tariffs as possible, and free trade agreement. we will have to see how she gets on. i do very much indeed.

—— thank you very much indeed. i think we can talk to ken clarke, the former chancellor who voted against the bill tonight. perhaps not surprisingly, given his long history of pro europeanism. thank you for being with us. why vote against the bill? most people who voted would have been startled if i had cast a vote in favour of britain leaving the european union, went for 50 yea rs i have the european union, went for 50 years i have been arguing the other way. i was actually around when we first joint. way. i was actually around when we firstjoint. it way. i was actually around when we first joint. it has way. i was actually around when we firstjoint. it has been a great success and we have benefited politically enormously. 0ur role in the world until now has depended upon as being one of the leading, influential countries in the european union. and ourfree—trade access to 500 million prosperous consumers, almost half of our overseas trade, is the basis of the modern competitive economy that we have. i voted to keep that. i was on the losing side because i think the

majority of mps agree with me, as do the majority of ministers. they have all gone along with this referendum thing. they all assume that nigel farage could not win that, and that there would be a slight blip whilst they campaigned but then they would continue. having signed up to it, they all felt obliged to vote as they all felt obliged to vote as they have today was the retribution is would come. defying the national majority. and the retribution that would've come from the right wing tabloid press. it is a slightly unreal situation because nothing has happened yet. but this very historic vote. the actual real activity, the putting together of our new relationship with the other countries in europe and the wider world, it is not really started properly yet. and we will have years of this. the mood could change significantly. at the moment the

excitement of the referendum, the pressures of being the people, all that, after we get into the real action from the summer onwards, i don't know where the little mood will go. —— the pressures of being the people. many people have said that this was the greatest exercise in democracy ever held in this country and 17.4 million people disagree with you and wanted to leave the european union. surely you should respect democracy and respect what they said? 16 million agreed with me and the majority of my colleagues. i have been on the losing side in the general election andi losing side in the general election and i have asked people to vote for the conservatives and my constituents are voted conservative but the public voted labour. i do not go to parliament and say that i am now converted. and i agree with the labour pa rty‘s am now converted. and i agree with the labour party's policy on education or defence or whatever because the public have instructed

me to change my opinion. i go to exercise myjudgment me to change my opinion. i go to exercise my judgment with me to change my opinion. i go to exercise myjudgment with what i think is in the national interest and the interest of my constituents. and of course i am answerable to my constituents for those judgments at the end of the parliament. that is how it works. the idea of having a nationally organised opinion poll is a sop. david cameron on the cold it because he thought it would calm down at the hardline eurosceptic ministers in the run—up to the election. —— david cameron only called it. what sort of brexit is theresa may heading towards?- called it. what sort of brexit is theresa may heading towards? at the moment, as far as you can work out any moment, as far as you can work out a ny clear moment, as far as you can work out any clear policy objectives from the lancaster house speeches, we will move on from that tomorrow and make it clearer, but her main priority appears to be control of immigration. that is first above other things. and so we will have more close control of people coming

from other european countries to work here and the other steps have been taken from that, flowing from that, giving up the european rules, that, giving up the european rules, that they all have to be british rules that we trade on now. and the european court will no longer settle disputes, our disputes will only be settled by british courts. the actual free—trade is in settled by british courts. the actualfree—trade is in danger of being sacrificed. you have to get the balance between the two but we seem the balance between the two but we seem to be going very heavily in favour of stopping romanian nurses and german academics coming here, and german academics coming here, and being prepared to give up our trade relationships in exchange for that. and i hope the white paper modifies that and we are more flexible when the real negotiating starts. and it will not start until the summer because we will not had any serious negotiating, i suspect, until you have got some of the major collections over on the continent.

no government, british, french or anything else, can carried —— can carry out a major negotiation while fighting an election campaign. the dutch, the french and germans have to get their collections out of the way. ken clarke, thank you forjoining us. ken clarke, thank you forjoining us. just to remind you of that vote about an hour us. just to remind you of that vote aboutan hourorso us. just to remind you of that vote about an hour or so ago, which was overwhelmingly to back triggering article 15, the beginning of the formal process of leaving the eu. —— article 50. 498 in favour of the european union bill, and 114 against, so an overwhelming majority of 384 altogether. it now goes to the committee stages next week, and then to the lords. still a long way to go but theresa may confident that she will trigger article 50 by the end of next month. that's it from

westminster on an historic day here. back to you, clive. what will tomorrow morning's front pages make of this? i suspect they will have a lot to say, and we will be telling you at 10:40pm. we will be telling you at 10:40pm. we will bejoined by a columnist be telling you at 10:40pm. we will be joined by a columnist from the mirrorand be joined by a columnist from the mirror and the deputy editor of the express , mirror and the deputy editor of the express, so stay with us for that. now, the weather. there is a potential storm brewing for friday, so we will keep you posted on that. on wednesday, rain again coming into the south west. it will mean most of us will have a mild night, except the far north—east of scotland where there will be frost. most of us will awaken to quite a drab picture, with outbreaks of rain, some hill fog and a strengthening wind. gales are expected in southern and western

areas will stop there will be rain. brighter skies will arrive before more shower was later in the day. it will be mild — more shower was later in the day. it will be mild -10—12dc. more shower was later in the day. it will be mild — 10—12dc. there is the potential for something even will be mild — 10—12dc. there is the potentialfor something even more stormy to come on friday, with gales, severe gales or even storm force winds. we will keep you posted on that. hello. this is bbc news. the headlines: the mps have vote in favour of the government's brexit bill by 498 to 114, a majority of 384 to start the formal process of leaving

the european union after 44 years. brexit supporters were delighted. the commons voted overwhelmingly for this. three quarters of labour mps have been reassured by the commitments we have given on workers' rights, but! commitments we have given on workers' rights, but i do accept alex's point on the need for close consultation. the real battle is not whether we're leaving. that was determined, as i say, last year. the real battle is, what is the future relationship with the eu? and that is the battle that we'll start next week, in the committee stage. two labour mps, rachael maskell, and dawn butler, resigned from the shadow front bench before defying jeremy corbyn's three—line whip to vote in favour of brexit. 47 labour mps 47 labourmps and 47 labour mps and total rebelled against their leadership. the inquest into the deaths of british tourists in tunisia has heard a statement from a teenager who survived but lost his brother, uncle and grandfather in the attack injune 2015. four people involved in fraudulently selling puppies kept in poor conditions at a travellers' site in essex have been given

suspended sentences. us national security advisor michael flynn has given an update on iran's ballistic missile test on sunday where he said trump administration is bringing iran again under the watch list. the trump administration condemns such actions by iran that undermine security, prosperity and stability throughout and beyond the middle east, and which places american lives at risk. president trump has severely criticised the various agreements reached between iran and the 0bama administration, as well as the united nations, as being weak and in effective. instead of being thankful to the united states in these agreements, iran is now feeling emboldened. as of today, we are officially putting iran on notice. 0ur correspondent kim ghattas joins us live from washington. kim, first of all, what does putting

iran on notice actually mean?m kim, first of all, what does putting iran on notice actually mean? it is a good question and we don't know, which is why a lot of foreign policy and military exports are a bit worried —— experts are a bit worried by this statement. it doesn't have any teeth, at least not that we can see. it is possible be trump administration may be considering a new round of sanctions against iran thatis new round of sanctions against iran that is not related to the nuclear deal, because of course, iran insists that their missile tests are not in breach of the nuclear deal. but i think that mostly what the trump administration wanted to do is to send a signal to iran that there isa to send a signal to iran that there is a new administration in town, that this agrees with the approach of the 0bama administration towards iran. president 0bama was very much criticised by republicans when he

was in office over what they called a soft approach to iran where they said he looked away from what ever iran was doing in order to uphold the deal. this administration wants to make clear, this is not going to be their approach, but we don't know exactly how they will go about that. that's fine, a new administration wanting to put its own red lines out there, but specifically, michael flynn, the national security adviser, is saying that iran is in contravention of un resolutions. now, is iran, infiring this missile, in contravention of un resolutions? the iranians say they are not, so you could start having a debate about who is right and who is wrong in a capital city where there isa wrong in a capital city where there is a lot of talk about alternative fa cts is a lot of talk about alternative facts right now. i think there are different ways of interpreting this

un security council resolution, but in principle,... it's up to interpretation. the iranians will say they are not in contravention. whether the united states can prove that they are, whether they can corral support for further sanctions at the un or whether they are going to go ahead with a more unilateral sanction, although that is what will come under consideration. but putting iran on notice is not usually language that is used by the white house, or by the state department. of course, there is no secretary of state just yet, although he was just approved on a senate floor vote, but the relationship between the us and iran, orthe relationship between the us and iran, or the tensions, relationship between the us and iran, orthe tensions, i relationship between the us and iran, or the tensions, i should say, are one of the key tests that this trump administration will face in the coming days and weeks. sure, it

does seem curious. by all accounts, iran has test fired several ballistic missiles since the nuclear deal back in 2015, and apparently the 0bama administration has done nothing about it. this is the first test firing since president trump has been in office, so either the 0bama administration has been asleep at the trump administration is overreacting. which do you think it is? it's prosser bhui -- it's possibly a bit of both, and perhaps the iranians were tying to trace the trump administration with this missile launch to see what the reaction would be. all right. kim, good to see you. a coroner investigating the deaths of thirty british tourists who were killed in an islamist terror attack in tunisia in 2015 has praised the courage of a 16—year—old boy who lost three members of his family in the attack.

the hearing was told that 0wen richards held his grandfather in his arms, trying to shield him from the gunman. daniela relph reports. for every family these inquests are deeply upsetting. but for suzanne richards and her son 0wen richards their suffering has been unbearable. it was a holiday that tore a family apart. the trip to tunisia was described as a jolly boys outing. this photograph taken on the flight there. grandad pat evans, his grandson joel and his son adrian. the following day they would all be killed. in a statement read to the court the sole survivor of the group, 0wen richards, described how they all ran trying to escape as they heard shooting. cctv footage shows the gunman walking into the hotel, past the lifts. an animation shown to the inquest illustrates the route it is believed that he took.

into the indoor swimming pool area where he murdered three members of the same family. 0wen richards said he heard his brother shouting no, no. as the gunman attacked. he lay on the floor hugging his grandfather. but when he looked down there was a gunshot wound. pat evans told his grandson, he got me. 0wen then saw that his brother and his uncle had also been killed. in incredibly moving scenes in court when 0wen richards had read a statement the coroner said it seems to me that 0wen acted with extraordinary courage in trying to protect his grandfather. when's mother suzanne lost elder son, her brother and her father. today she read tributes to them all until inquest, that fatal horrific morning destroyed my family. we are broken and everyday is a colossal struggle.

she went on, i'm determined to give 0wen the best life can. what this mother and son have been through is hard to imagine. suzanne richards told the inquest today, how can four people go on holiday and only one of them come home? now, how do you know if you're getting the cheapest fare when you book a train ticket? well, rail operators have admitted the system can be baffling and are going to try out simplifying it on some lines. the trial is aimed at making sure passengers get the best fares available. ticket machines will be simplified to make them more userfriendly. and they'll put an end to what's called split ticketing. that's the anomaly that means a single ticket can be twice as expensive as buying multiple tickets for exactly the same journey. with me now to discuss the measures is megan french, a consumer analyst

at moneysavingexpert. it's good to see you. thanks for being with us. finally something is being with us. finally something is being done about all this, because it is bonkers, and apparently there are millions of combinations across the country of affairs that you can get. yes, there are over 60 million fa res get. yes, there are over 60 million fares in the system and the steps area fares in the system and the steps are a step in the right direction but it won't go far enough and won't get rid of split ticketing completely. explains split ticketing again and what you think should be done. as you say, it is about buying multiple tickets for one journey. imagine going from london to durham, and it costs £146. if you bought a ticket from london to york and then york to durham, it could come in at £70, a 50% saving. these new measures won't address that? these will be if you have to swap trains,

so if you are going from scotland to cornwall, but we are saying it won't get rid of the problem of if you are buying one ticket and staying on the train, you should be given the cheapest fare, not having to find the combinations. why can't a machine be set up to give you the cheapest ticket from one place to another? that's what we'd like to see. the hope is, eventually a customer will always get the cheapest ticket available at the time. there are 60 million fares in the system and it needs to be tidied up, and quickly. why has it not been done before? i think it goes back to historical issues where train companies have swapped franchises, we have had new stations, and as you say, it is bonkers and it needs to be clearer. i didn't use the word bonkers. but you are right, it is bonkers. but you are right, it is

bonkers. the roll—out will be nationwide, one hopes, if it actually works. it is being trialled between london and sheffield and london and scotland. they will look at different areas on different routes, and they are looking at getting rid of outdated fares were sometimes you would pay more for a slower —— pay less for a slower train, geta slower —— pay less for a slower train, get a cheaper ticket if you swa p train, get a cheaper ticket if you swap journeys, and they will also look at return fares. there is a situation where two singles can be cheaper than a return, and instead you will be offered airline prices where you can mix and match and get the cheapest tickets for your return. some people would like to see the renationalisation of the railway lines — with that make a —— would that make a difference to

ticketing and the pricing of tickets? what is the problem?m seems to me there are a run—off a lot of fares out there and there is no simplification here. we would like it to be easy for consumers, whatever the situation and whoever is in charge of those roots, we want consumers to be able to get the cheapest fare available at the time. megan french, thanks forjoining us. the headlines on bbc news: mps have voted overwhelmingly in favour of giving theresa may the power to begin a formal process for leaving the european union. two more labour mps have resigned from the

shadow front bench to vote against the party whip and oppose the bill. at the inquest into the deaths of 30 british people killed in the tunisian terror attack, one teenager described the scene as his brother and grandfather was shot dead. the ftse and the dax rallied after two successive days of losses. the dough and the nasdaq in america are also up. —— beeb now —— the dow. donald trump has nominated a conservativejudge, neil gorsuch, to fill a vacancy on the us supreme court, the highest judicial authority. if confirmed by the senate, his appointment could have far—reaching consequences for some of america's most contested social issues, from abortion to gun control. here's our north america editor, jon sopel. forget the humdrum way a supreme court choice is normally announced. this is the donald trump white house and all geared for prime time television.

every network taking the announcement live, tension building through the day. now it was showtime. was that the surprise? politicians come and go but neil gorsuch, a conservative with impeccable credentials has just been handed a job for life to the most powerful court in the land. standing here in the house of history i am acutely aware of my own imperfections. i pledge that if confirmed i will do all that my powers permit to be a faithful servant of the constitution and laws of this great country. last night there were protests against his appointment outside the supreme court. this will become a political dogfight for sure. not least because the vacancy came up a year ago but republicans refused to even meet the barack 0bama nominee. now democrats are promising to be equally

belligerent. i have serious doubts that judge gorsuch is up to the job. in the meantime the supreme court nominee is on a charm offensive, touring the capital gladhanding, offering reassurance. and donald trump is impatient to get things done quickly. he had this advice for the senate majority leader mitch mcconnell. we have the same gridlock in washington for longer than eight years, a lot longer in fairness to president 0bama. i would say, if you can, mitch, go nuclear. the supreme court gets the vote on all the most contentious issues in american society, gun control, abortion, gay rights and maybe soon donald trump's controversial immigration ban. for many voting republican last november it was not about donald trump, he was a means to an end. the end being keeping the supreme court in conservative control. and it could become even more conservative. two of the more liberal justices are now quite elderly. justice breyer is 78, judge ginsberg 83. if president trump

gets to choose their replacements the political complexion of the supreme court will have changed dramatically. and that in turn could result in massive change to the social fabric of america. i'm joined by the chair of the academic group american politics uk. what's your view of this choice for the supreme court? well, i think the choice is going to make conservative voters who supported trump extremely happy. this is their payback, well, the nomination is. there are many stops the jump through before he ta kes stops the jump through before he takes his seat, but i don't think that trump is particularly personally a social conservative. i don't think those kinds of things

are an issue for him, but he sang to the conservative choir when he was running for the presidency, and now those people want a reward. and they will get it in the form of mr gorsuch, a staunch social conservative who has strong views on those hot issues such as abortion, so he is an appropriate choice, but whether he gets through the senate confirmation is another story. what do you think democrats should do about this man getting put forward — should they block it? it is such a dilemma because in many ways, if you look at what has gone on for the past year, since the judge who is being replaced died, a very respected choice was put forward than the republicans in congress would not even consider the nomination, sydney seat —— so the

seat has been empty for a year. so, if they are to be petulant, they can say, you did it so we will, they can filibuster and do all sorts of things to delay the process, but in the end, it's about what is best for the end, it's about what is best for the country, and if the court carries on, only having eight justices, there are another who knows how long while they squabble about the nomination, in a sense, eve ryo ne about the nomination, in a sense, everyone loses. you say it is about what is in the best interests of the country, but as you pointed out, the republicans stymied a choice from president 0bama for a whole year, and as you say, that meant that there could not be a majority verdict on the court, so clearly for one side in the argument, the public interest and good doesn't really matter, and i wonder if the democrats, peeling the way they do, some believe he is not a legitimate president, some believe he should

not be where he is, do you think at this stage they may decide, you know what, we're not going to worry about the public good, we're going to play hardball? it is likely, and you could understand why they might take that course of action. it is the less grown—up route but it is an understandable one. i also think the real fear is understandable one. i also think the realfear is one more understandable one. i also think the real fear is one more step down the line, because he was known as the arnold schwarzenegger of jurisprudence, a hardline conservative, staunch on social issues particularly, and considerate to be replacing like with like. when the next justices to be replacing like with like. when the nextjustices advised to step down or very possibly dies in office, that is going to be trump's real proof because he has the power

to upset the balance between liberals and conservatives. at the moment, things will carry on as they were, but the next round is what will terrify liberals and could be even more fractious i suppose as a process. thank you forjoining us. pleasure. and ilya shapiro, a seniorfellow in constitutional studies at conservative think tank the cato insitutejoins me now via webcam from washington. it is good to see you. thanks for joining us. what is your view of neil gorsuch? good pick? we are what you would call a liberal organisation, a libertarian organisation. this satisfies eve ryo ne organisation. this satisfies everyone who is not a progressive, thatis everyone who is not a progressive, that is libertarians, classical liberals, social conservatives, establishment legal aid elite, or populists, the average trump voter. he is very much in the line of his

predecessor in terms of interpreting the constitution in terms of its original meaning. but here's less abrasive and acerbic. a good writer who will do more for a collegiate approach in the court. there are democrats who are saying they believe he is far too conservative and would tip the balance of the court far too unfavourably towards the right. do you have any sympathy with those democrats who say, look, president 0bama ‘s pick for this seat was kept out for a year and as such, we the democrats are going to hold this up. those are two separate argument is, one about whether he's too conservative — i think he is a standard republican. it's not that donald trump is different from another republican president, i think he is in the mainstream of

republican — appointed judges and was confirmed unanimously to the lower court a decade ago. the second argument the process argument, that isa argument the process argument, that is a political argument, a risky one that the senate republicans may, and a won at the end of the day during the election. the democrats are free to make that now. i don't know if it would be a winning one for them, particularly given that they have democratic senators up election next yearin democratic senators up election next year in states that donald trump won. the president has already said that the republican leadership in the senate should try and get in a rule change and have this be a simple majority and not a supermajority — do you think that is a good idea? if the democrats say, we will try to stymied this the way that republicans stymied president 0bama's pick? that republicans stymied president obama's pick? if it comes though, i think they should. traditional

filibusters have something unseemly about them in the first place. it wasn't really done until a decade ago when harry reid started doing that in the senate when the democrats had the majority, then he got rid of it for lower court nominees. if it comes to it, and i am not sure it well, because at the end of the day, this choice does not shift the balance of the court. it isa shift the balance of the court. it is a conservative replacing a conservative. it is not like down the road, if trump has the opportunity to replace the oldest member, that would be a much bigger fight. i member, that would be a much bigger fight. i can see a filibuster happening there, but because of those vulnerable democrats up re—election, i don't even if chuck schumer, the democratic leader in the senate would be able to cobble together the 41 votes needed for a filibuster. he has, saying that neil gorsuch is a little too far to the

right. briefly, you alluded to justice kennedy and justice ginsburg — that is the real prize because they are both elderly and as a result, if donald trump gets to pick their replacements, we are talking about a conservative supreme court for some time to come. that's right. essentially, the shorthand is that you have four conservatives or three, and four liberals, then kennedy is the swing on different issues, please is different people at different times. yes, if he is replaced or ginsburg is replaced, who is on the left, that would be a much more solid conservative majority, so things would move in a different direction. all right, we'll leave it there. thank you for joining us. time for the weather. helen has the details. we are still watching this storm in the atlantic and what it will do on

friday. rain is moving northwards. another band of rain moving through tonight. it is my overall parts apart from the far north of scotland. clear skies and a touch of frost. it will be bright tomorrow morning. in the morning, all that cloud and hill fog, and strengthening winds, perhaps even severe gales on southern and western coasts. there could be some brightening in the west later in the day but showers will follow behind. the consolation is it will be mild — 11 or 12 celsius. the concern is that friday's storm could be strong. we don't know where it will go. will it head to the north of france or will it heads across the south of the uk? there are warnings already, they are on the website. as ever, we will keep you posted. goodbye. those in america's most senior

diplomat has just been confirmed. rex tillerson is the new us secretary of state. we will take you to the trump heartland of tennessee, to the trump heartland of tennessee, to find out how the people voted for him feel about their new president. so many of us are looking for trump to do exactly what he has been doing so far, to completely change the landscape, blow up washington, figuratively, and give us a new american revolution. in london, it has been a landmark day for the brexit process. the ayes to the right, 498, the noes to the left, 114. so the ayes have it, the ayes have it.