this is bbc news. the headlines at nine: donald trump condemns the firing of a ballistic missile by north korea into the sea of japan. renewed pressure for speaker, john bercow, after a video emerges of him talking about his vote in the eu referendum. i voted to remain personally.” thought it was better to stay in the european union and then not. more than 200 pilot whales — stranded on a beach in new zealand — are re—floated and have swum away. 14 retired bishops accuse church of england leaders of suppressing the views of gay christians. also in the next hour, the stars will be out in force on the red carpet tonight for this year's baftas. la la land leads the way with 11 nominations. and in half an hour — we take a look at this

morning's front pages, including the sunday times, which says secret succession planning is underway for the next labour leader afterjeremy corbyn. the japanese prime minister shinzo abe, has described the launch of a ballistic missile by north korea, as "absolutely intolerable". it's the first such launch since donald trump took office as us president. he says america is 100 percent behind japan. the missile was fired from an air base in north pyongan province — and flew about 500 kilometres east into the sea of japan. the us military, which tracked the rocket, says it believes it was a medium or intermediate range missile.

bill hayton reports. this significance of this test will depend upon what kind of missile was used. the successful launch of this would be a step forward for north korea's home—grown missile programme coming after seven failures last year. however, if it's the tried and tested technology of the nodong or scud types, it will not symbolise any significant development. but just important is the timing of the test. one of the aspects of the timing. kim jong—un has not been testing because of the crisis going on in south korea over the south korean president being impeached. he doesn't want to influence the people in south korea to support a conservative replacement but i think he is also anxious to take some action against the trump administration and coming up in march, there will be a major exercise in south korea and he will very much not like that and so i think

he is reacting to several things going on at the same time. warnings of grave consequences. translation: wiest and they warn that if the king john and —— north korean leader does not stop, they will be grave consequences. translation: north korea's most recent missile launch is

intolerable. north korea must fully comply with the relevant un security council resolutions. the white house said it would consider new sanctions, and calls on china to do more to influence the north.” sanctions, and calls on china to do more to influence the north. ijust wa nt more to influence the north. ijust want everybody to understand and fully know that the united states of america stands behind japan, its great ally, ioo%. thank you. president trump has talked tough on north korea and now faces a test of will. let's get more on this story from our reporter kevin kim, who joins us now from seoul. what is the significance of the launch, the first since donald trump

came to power? the timing will not bea came to power? the timing will not be a coincidence as north korea often carried out tests close to political events and anniversaries. what many observers are worried about is the direction president trump's relations will be going with the north korean leader. in terms of the north korean leader. in terms of the new quick abilities being able to strike the united states, they say they are near completion. resident trump says he will not let this happen. if he intends to test the boundaries of the united states, observers say real military confrontation could happen. in times of difficulty, will donald trump be able to take measured steps over emotional responses? that is the

question. what is likely to be the reaction from the united states?” think the united states will be looking very closely to further tests because north korea tends to have multiple tests some time to perfect its technology. under the leadership of kim jong—un, perfect its technology. under the leadership of kimjong—un, there we re leadership of kimjong—un, there were more tests last year than under the rule of his father, kim jong—il. many believe the north is serious about becoming a nuclear weapons state. the speaker of the house of commons, john bercow, has insisted that his impartiality has not been compromised after a video emerged showing him commenting on political issues. the uk parliament website states that "spea kers must be politically impartial."

mr bercow is already facing calls to stand down after saying last week that he would veto a parliamentary address by president donald trump. the latest comments, published in the sunday telegraph, were made at an address to students at reading university three days earlier. this may not be popular with some people in the audience. i voted to remain for economic reasons, because we are in a world of power blocs, and for all the weaknesses and deficiencies, adding it is better to be part of it. he is supposed to be impartial? he is. on the parliament website, it clearly states that the speaker should not express political views,

even on retirement. it brings into question his impartiality, the second time in a week. he took the headphones on monday when he talked about donald trump. the kind of the tote donald trump from addressing parliament. —— gave a detriment. he got some support but others thought he will had gone too far and there was a motion of no confidence, although only one mp has signed itself. it has called into question his impartiality. now that he has expressed his views on the eu, that is being brought into question. supporters ofjohn virgo say that, during the referendum campaign itself, he made no mention. ——john bowker —— there isn't one person who has

signed the motion which calls for a no—confidence motion. how serious is the threat to the speaker? he has had trouble with people in his own party who do not like him being a speaker. he has faced criticism always. when you look at the detail of what the speaker is supposed to be saying not supposed to be saying, he does appear to have stepped over the mark. potentially, it could be difficult for him. you would have to have a lot of people signing a motion which may be difficult for those who want the opportunity to speak in parliament and do not want the speaker not to call in their name. i'm joined via webcam from southend, by the conservative mp james duddridge, who has tabled a motion of no confidence in the speaker over his comments about us president trump. thank you for talking to us. what do

you make of the latest comments which have emerged from the speaker? they are outrageous. i am incredibly surprised that the speaker now has expressed views on a number of issues. on brexit, on immigration, state visits, diplomacy. he is incapable of a partially sharing debates in the house of commons now and must go. his spokesman is pointing out the fact that, of course, mps on all sides of the debate had their own views on the eu. and they point out that he has chaired numerous debates and votes on eu issues. they say she has been com pletely on eu issues. they say she has been completely impartial in his role as speaker. —— he has been impartial. that is one of the responsibilities when you take an office. he is incapable of sharing the house of commons on sessions like the great repeal bill. that will follow

article 50. he has shown his views don't have to be... he has shown views on a number of the issues that are important to people, the nature of brexit, the nature of the immigration system in the uk. specifically in relation to the eu. he simply must go. his position is untenable, which is why i tabled a vote of no confidence in him. as the house was closing down last thursday to give other honourable members the opportunity over the week to decide whether, when parliament returns, we will be able to sign the early day motion as a vote of no—confidence. they will decide whether or not to do that was yours is the only name on the motion. how much support you think you have? a massive amount. that is why i tabled it. i did it as parliament closed so no one could add their name until monday week. in order that people could reflect on

whether this was the right thing to do, bringing the no—confidence vote, and the reading university speech does more than what he did last week which led me to lead the lay table the motion. i don't even know if you've come back before parliament agrees the lee reassembles. but it does not force anything to happen. how will you insure that there are moves to reach the lee remove the speaker? the vote of no confidence cannot remain without being dealt with. there will have to be time given to debate the motion. i have been inundated with details of members of the public —— e—mails for members of

the public —— e—mails for members of the public, asking whether this... there are any of a lots more people who have signed the motion supporting the assertion whichjohn bercow made that donald trump should not be addressing both houses of parliament. there was applause in the chamber when he made that announcement. that will make it difficult indeed to get it underway to re m ove difficult indeed to get it underway to remove him. the you really expect the government to support your campaign when it has so much else on its plate? this is an bull about impartiality, not the president of the united states. i have impartiality, not the president of the uni isi states. i have impartiality, not the president of the uni is thattes. i have impartiality, not the president of the uni is that the i have l will thank you for talking to us.

more than 200 pilot whales that were stranded on a beach in new zealand have re—floated themselves and swum away. another 17 were returned to the sea by teams of volunteers. about 350 whales died in two days at the beach at farewell spit. conservation officials say there is a chance that volu nteers volunteers help the whales back to the sea with the help of high tide. this time, rescuers are happy about saving most of the pod. on the

remote coastline of golden bay, it had been deja vu. a second pod of 200 pilot whales had become stranded after 400 had accidentally beached himself previously. it is the largest known strandings since 1985, the third largest on record. the pod which became stranded on thursday, around 300 died before rescuers could reach them. the latest teddy back to get stuck on farewell spit, measures had to be taken to stop those who voted to come back to shore. we must stop those other ones from coming back in. conservation is —— conservationist unsure why it happens. now, a mass will graveyard.

—— whale graveyard. surviving wales have intact and we can only hope they will not get stuck again in the murky waters of farewell spit, which is proving to be a great hazard for the pilots will. well i'm joined via webcam now by herb christophers, from the department of conservation in wellington, who's colleagues have been involved in the rescue. can you bring us up to date with the latest situation? those 17 pilot whales were stranded, the large group that got off with the tide last night. they seem to have joined up last night. they seem to have joined up with the original pod and have made their way eastwards out of golden bay. they seem to be heading in the right direction. we are hopeful they will get out to the open ocean. looking at the distressing pictures there, you look

at the volunteers there in the water trying gently to encourage them to go back out to sea. those that are still alive. are there not more methods that could be used to try and prevent this happening and try to shift the wales out? it is difficult to manage a natural phenomenon. the area of golden bay, it is something like 900,000 square kilometres. not all of it is shallow. when they get into the middle it is difficult to manage that. other methods, we have had things that have not been easy to put into place. fencing and other things like that. it is not going to work. we are going to have to deal with the phenomenon i think freedom in the meantime, whales have been doing this for thousands of years. they won't stop in a hurry. we were

able to help them when we can. why do we think that there were so many whales that were beached over the last few days? and think it is the size of the pod. it depends who the leader is. i am not an expert on this aspect of things. this is a very large pod. 400 on the first day and 240 on the second time, that is and 240 on the second time, that is a fairly big number over two days. i don't know the reason for the large numbers. you see large pods of whales. what are your priorities? are you expecting more to come in or is ita are you expecting more to come in or is it a case of dealing with those that have already died sadly and have washed up? we're keeping a

watch. i think the main threat is over. we can never say never until they are out of the way. we are looking at the beached whales. looking at how to dispose of them. that will happen over the next week oi’ so. that will happen over the next week or so. we will make hard decisions about how we dispose of over 300 whale carcasses. thank you for joining us. 14 sailors have been rescued by a royal navy warship after their racing yacht was damaged in a storm in the atlantic ocean yesterday. hms dragon — a type 2 destroyer — diverted 500 miles to save 13 britons and one american. the sailors only suffered minor injuries but their 60—foot yacht lost its mast and rudder in the bad weather. the headlines on bbc news: north korea has fired a ballistic missile into the sea ofjapan. the launch is the first since president trump was elected. the speaker of the house of commons, john bercow, is facing renewed criticism after a video has emerged

of him declaring that he voted remain in the eu referendum. more than 200 pilot whales that were stranded on a beach in new zealand have re—floated and returned to sea. 14 retired bishops have written an open letter to church of england leaders accusing them of failing to fully reflect the views of gay christians in an official report on the church's position on homosexuality. last month, the church announced it did not support gay marriage. the decision will be debated at the general synod later this week. helena lee reports. last month, the church of england decided its position on the divisive issue of sexuality. it followed three years of so—called shared conversations, and stated that "marriage should only be between a man and a woman." the church said all potential clergy, gay and straight,

should be asked about their sexual conduct and their lifestyle. but 14 retired bishops have today expressed their concern that the views of lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender members have been ignored. in an unusual move, they have written an open letter to the church of england bishops, a group led by the former bishop of worcester. they entered those negotiations knowing that they would have to reveal themselves, in a circumstance that might carry a price in terms of their life and their career, their ministry, what was offered to them, how they were regarded. and they nonetheless did that. and they feel that what has come out here is a betrayal in the specific sense that their voice is not heard. the church of england said the shared conversations were not changing people's views, but recognising jesus in people with whom the participants disagreed. the divisive debate over sexuality will continue,

when the church's governing general synod will meet next week in london. helena, bbc news. thousands of operations are being cancelled with highly—skilled surgeons left "kicking their heels" because of a shortage of hospital beds. that's the warning from the royal college of surgeons and the organisation that represents nhs trusts. in a joint letter to the sunday times, they argue that a lack of funding for health and social care in england is leading to what they call a "shocking waste" and damaging efforts to improve efficiency. nhs england says only 1% of operations are cancelled. our health correspondent dominic hughes has more. over the past few weeks, the bbc two documentary series hospital has demonstrated how a shortage of beds contributes to the pressure on the health service. this can lead to long waits for those needing to be admitted from accident and emergency departments, but also for those needing planned surgery.

i sometimes feel that i spend as much energy on trying to organise and manage beds and the movement, the flow, of patients within the hospital to allow us to do what we want to get on with, which is to operate. the programme showed how, if beds are not available for patients to recover in safely, operations simply cannot go ahead. the body that represents nhs trusts says this is damaging efforts to improve productivity with surgeons left kicking their heels while they wait for beds to be made free. we are waiting for someone to let us do work. it is not good for the staff and it is not good for the patients and it is not good for the efficiency of the nhs. the latest figures from nhs england reveal more than 95% of beds were occupied last week, well above the 85% that is regarded as the safe limit. the problem is closely linked to delays in providing adequate care

outside of hospital, especially for frail and elderly patients once they are ready to be discharged. today, doctors and hospital managers say fixing the nhs means fixing social care, and learning the lessons of an extraordinarily tough winter which is not over yet. dominic hughes, bbc news. people in switzerland are voting on a proposal to relax the country's traditionally strict rules on citizenship. it would make it easier for third generation immigrants, people who were born in switzerland, and whose parents and grandparents already lived permanently in the country, to become swiss nationals. imogen foulkes reports. becoming swiss is long and often costly. candidates must typically live 12 years in switzerland before they can apply. speak a swiss language, and to show they are integrated. in interviews and tests. the fee can run to £7,000.

supporters of the plan to simplify the process say it is ridiculous to ask people who were born and have lived all their lives in switzerland to prove they are integrated. translation: we are talking about a lot of young people living in switzerland who were born in switzerland who were born in switzerland and even their parents we re switzerland and even their parents were born here. their grandparents once emigrated in switzerland. these are people who live here but do not have a red swiss passport. but opponents claim the measures are just the first step in allowing all into switzerland. 25% of the population is not swiss. to get easy citizenship. an opposition poster of a woman in a broker. area team in switzerland. even suggests to is the motivation of the country. this may, however, have backfired. —— an

increase in islam. to pass, the measure will needs the majority of support. it can still be defeated. an egyptian, believed to be the world's heaviest woman, has arrived in india for weight reduction surgery. the family of 36—year—old eman ahmed abd el aty said it was the first time she had left home for 25 years. she was diagnosed with elephantiasis at birth, a condition which causes limbs and other parts of the body to swell due to a parasitic infection. the stars of the silver screen will be out in force on the red carpet at london's royal albert hall for the annual british academy film awards tonight. the modern day musical, la la land leads the field with 11 nominations, sci—fi drama, arrival

and the thriller nocturnal animals both have nine each. our arts editor, will gompertz, has been taking a look at the contenders. welcome to la la land. the musical homage to hollywood, which leads the way with 11 bafta nominations. including one for the director, damien chazelle, and its two leads, emma stone as a wannabe actress and ryan gosling as an aspiring jazz pianist. hi. susan, god! he'll be up againstjake gyllenhaal in the best actor category for his performance in nocturnal animals, for which the film's director, the fashion designer tom ford, is also nominated. andrew garfield is among the best actor contenders for his role as an heroic pacifist in hacksaw ridge. but he'll have to see off the hotly—tipped casey affleck, who is nominated for his portrayal of a broken man in manchester by the sea. she sings off key meryl streep is in the frame once again, this time for her performance as the delusional

florence fosterjenkins, for which she has a best actress nomination. it is a hotly—contested category, with natalie portman the one to beat for playing the title role injackie, which tracks jackie kennedy's reaction to her husband's assassination. my kids have got to start school tomorrow. i've got but 12 quid in my purse. a relatively unknown british actress, hayley squires, is shortlisted in the best supporting actress category for her role in the gritty film i, daniel blake, made by film veteran ken loach, who gets a best director nod. it's not easy for me to admit that i've been standing in the same place for 18 years! well i've been standing with you! i've been right here with you, troy! fences, the august wilson play about america in the 1950s, adapted and directed by denzel washington, sees his co—star viola davis get a best supporting actress nod. nicole kidman will compete with her for that bafta, having been nominated for her role as a compassionate mother in lion, with dev patel playing her adopted son, for which he gets

a supporting actor short listing. and who is you? nobody. i found him yesterday. as does mahershala ali, for his sensitive performance as a drug dealer with a heart in moonlight. but it is likely to be la la land's year, on a night which could have an added dimension of the possibility of politically pointed acceptance speeches. we'll have to see. what we do know is stephen fry will host proceedings once again, the duke and duchess of cambridge will be in attendance and mel brooks will be honoured with a bafta fellowship. and we'll bejoining jane hill and the film criticjason solomons on the baftas red carpet from 5:15 this afternoon and for a special results programme on the awards themselves from half past nine this evening on bbc news. some more wintry weather. sleet and

snow around in places. and across the hills of northern england. if other a few centimetres of snow blown around by strong winds. to the south, not establish is today. a little brighter than it was. northern scotland favoured for sunshine, but coldness for all. it remains windy through the night. the east wintry nurse recedes. cloudy in northern areas in the hills. temperatures have actually risen across the far south—west. slightly less cold air on the way. strong and gusty winds, particularly across devon and cornwall. still cold in the east, plenty of cloud, patchy rain,