this is bbc news. the headlines at 5pm. the dup and sinn fein prepare to begin talks aimed at forming a new power—sharing government in northern ireland after the republicans celebrate a surge in support president trump in team into the assembly we are ready to deal with all the issues, and ready to get back to delivering for all the people. president trump accuses the obama administration of tapping his phone during the presidential election campaign. concerns over the impact for 4,000 vauxhall workers in britain, as a french car company reportedly reaches a deal to buy general motors‘ european operations. a house of lords report says britain is not be legally obliged to make a final budget payment to the eu after brexit. also in the next hour: thousands of people march in london to demonstrate over nhs cuts. protestors have travelled from across the country to hear an address by labour leaderjeremy

corbyn. 0ur nhs is in crisis because of the lack of funding in social care, with many not getting the care and support they need, those waiting on trolleys. andy moray wins the dubai championships for the first time. sinn fein are celebrating their best ever showing elections to the irish assembly. we have 127 seats, just one behind the democratic irish

unionists. gerry adams has described the result is an end to the old status quo. the two parties now have three weeks to try to agree a new power—sharing coalition. in the past hour gerry adams said the result was of huge significance. the election yesterday was in many ways a watershed election. and we havejust started a process of reflecting what it all means. but clearly the unionist majority in the assembly has been ended. and the notion of a permanent or perpetual unionist majority has been demolished. we need to reflect on that, but so do the leaders of unionism, and so does everyone on this island and particularly the people in this part of the island.

speaking alongside him, michelle o'neill set out the steps she would be taking over the coming days. later on today and tomorrow morning i intend to have a conversation with both the british government and the irish government to discuss the way forward. i have also made contact with all the leaders of the political parties to talk about next week and how we're going to conduct ourselves in the time ahead. we have a period of three weeks in front of us, and whilst the task is not easy, i think it is achievable if people come at it with the right attitude. 0n come at it with the right attitude. on monday morning i will lead our team into the assembly where we are ready to deal with all the issues, we are ready to tackle but has been outstanding from previous agreements, and we're ready to get back to delivering for all people. the battle between unionism and nationalism has been at the centre of politics in northern ireland for decades. and the harsh words of old returned during this election campaign. the dup leader even compared

irish republicans to crocodiles. if you feed a crocodile, they are going to keep coming back and looking for more. this vote saw republicans bite back. the increase in support for sinn fein has left them just a single seat behind the democratic unionist party. until the start of this year, they worked in coalition with their old rivals, but now the animosity has returned, and that leaves major questions about the future of power—sharing at stormont. it is time for political leadership, it is time to get back to the principles of the good friday agreement. it is time to fix what is wrong. i think that is all doable if people come at it with the right attitude. but after such a bitter break—up, getting unionists back together with republicans will not be easy, and that is particularly true because of one demand sinn fein is making of the dup. they want arlene foster to step aside as first minister while a public inquiry takes place into a financial scandal linked to a botched green—energy scheme. last night, the dup leader left her count centre having refused

all bbc interview requests. a lot of what they are asking for are undeliverable, because whilst they dress it up with nice platitudes and nice language, actually it is incredibly one—sided, it does not fit with the notion of partnership. for so long, the big beast of politics here, unionism is facing a fresh roar from nationalism. just months ago they seemed to be working together, but in unionist east belfast, where the cs lewis square has been built in honour of the author's mythical tales of battle, there is a certain concern about what is emerging. our whole government system is not working for the people who need it, because they are up there squabbling over very little, to be honest. republicans are out again in force, so they are, we should get off our backsides and get out and vote now. many see the current divisions as a return to the politics of the past,

and once again a time of uncertainty for stormont. 0ur correspondent gillian hargreaves is in belfast for us. we listened to sinn fein in a live press c0 nfe re nce we listened to sinn fein in a live press conference earlier. they sounded quite conciliatory in their response to the election results, although arlene fosters position does remain a real sticking point. yes, the town of gerry adams's news conference they are was quite diplomatic. he said yes they would assert their mandate, because they have done very well in the opinion poll, but he did say they would try to find a way to go forward. sinn fein‘s leader in stormont, michelle o'neill, said that she was pretty confident that negotiations could ta ke confident that negotiations could take place if political parties went in with the right attitude, although she did acknowledge and it wouldn't be easy. and gerry adams said that

while his party acknowledged that arlene foster is the leader of the democratic unionist party, they are saying they cannot work with her as first minister while there is this ongoing public enquiry into exactly how taxpayers' money was used in this botched renewable energy scheme which of course caused the last stormont administration to break up amid so much acrimony. and they don't have long to sort it out. no, they have about three weeks. 0n monday the new assembly members will go to stormont, that is cold reception day, and then negotiations will start. they have until the 27th of march. the secretary of state then can either order fresh elections of people cannot agree. he can give them more time if he thinks that the parties do have some common ground and theyjust need to keep talking, or he could impose direct rule from westminster, and that means that whilst civil servants would be involved in the day—to—day running of northern ireland's

affairs here, it would ultimately be ministers in westminster have the final say on all sorts of policies and life over here. gillian, many thanks. some news to bring you from kent police who say they have received a report that the remains of a young child had been found on the isle of sheppey. 0fficers child had been found on the isle of sheppey. officers were called to broadway on sheer mess this afternoon. they say the age and identity of the infant are not known, and neither is the cause of death. 0fficers known, and neither is the cause of death. officers are at the scene as we speak conducting enquiries and are keen to hearfrom we speak conducting enquiries and are keen to hear from anyone who may have information. that is kent police saying they have had reports of the remains of an infant had been found. the us president donald trump has accused his predecessor barack obama of wire—tapping his phone a month before he was elected. he described president obama as a bad or sick guy, but offered no evidence to support his claims.

using his personal twitter account, mr trump claims that mr obama is behind tapping trump tower's phones in the lead—up to last november's presidential election. in a following tweet, the us president compares this alleged episode to the watergate scandal. earlier from washington the bbc‘s laura bicker explained where the claims have come from. if you look at the breitbart news, a conservative publication, the former publication of his chief strategist, they came out with a story alleging that there should be an investigation into president 0bama's conduct, because they believe it was under his orders that the fbi started to conduct an investigation into whether or not some of the trump campaign aides during the election had contact with russian officials. there is certainly no confirmation that such an investigation is going on. it's understood that there is.

there have been media reports that the fbi asked to tap the phones at trump tower, during the presidential election last summerer. they were denied that request initially, according to the media reports. they were eventually granted access in october, again according to those media reports. nothing has been confirmed. what president trump seems to be saying is that any investigation being conducted by the fbi is under the orders of president obama. he says that in itself warrants an investigation. what happened to president trump's appeal for unity in his speech to congress just two days ago? four days ago, we were talking about his most presidential hour so far as president. here we are, saturday morning here in washington dc. he flew to florida for the weekend and he woke up and started tweeting. it was a series of tweets.

he has been angered by the recent ramping up of reports into whether or not his campaign aides had contacts with russia. earlier this week, the attorney—general, jeff sessions, had to stand aside from any investigation into those russia claims, because he himself is said to have misspoke during a hearing under oath, where he said that he did not meet with any russian officials. it turned out well, actually, he met with the russian ambassador to the us on two occasions. now, he said that he didn't meet them under his guise as — he met him in his guise as senator, rather than a campaign aide. the newspapers, television, us networks have been focusing on whether or notjeff sessions lied under oath or whether or not he's done the right thing. when it comes to why he's making these claims,

he seems to be trying to turn the fire back to president obama rather than his own administration. mercedes is recalling 75,000 cars in the uk because they're at risk of catching fire. they are among 1 million cars affected worldwide, after 51 fires were reported. the company says the risk is small and that nobody has been injured. many mercedes models built between 2015 and 2017 could be affected. thousands of people have taken part in a march and demonstration in london today to protest at cuts to nhs services. 0rganisers say theresa may's demands on austerity in the nhs represent a real risk to patients and safety. people travelled from across the country to attend the march. the labour leaderjeremy corbyn addressed the crowd. theresa may did not wait to get to the united states to discuss trade agreements with donald trump. i tell

you this, we are going to block any trade agreement that gives a green light for us health care companies to come here and strip out and take from our national health service. police in birmingham have launched an investigation after a nine—year—old boy died from a suspected allergic reaction. the child collapsed at the al hijrah school in bordesley green yesterday afternoon. police say a postmortem examination will be carried out, to try to establish the cause of death. the french car—maker which owns peugeot and citroen is reported to have reached an agreement to buy vauxhall from general motors. talk of a deal has raised concerns about the future of vauxhall‘s two uk factories, at luton and ellesmere port, which employ more than 4,000 people. an official announcement is expected on monday. our business correspondent joe lynam reports. this vauxhall plant is one of the more efficient car—making factories in europe.

82% of the astras made here are exported, mostly to europe. but the workers here may have new bosses from monday, when it is likely that the company which makes peugeot cars, psa, confirms that it has bought vauxhall and 0pel. but with too many factories in europe and not enough demand, psa is likely to have a long, hard look at which plants to keep open. and that puts vauxhall under the microscope. vauxhall employs just under 2,000 staff at its ellesmere port plant, which makes astras. it van—making factory in luton employees 11100 people, with around 18,000 jobs dependent on vauxhall throughout the uk. in all, vauxhall makes just under 200,000 cars a year. in the short—term we will see the ellesmere port plant open till 2021 because you cannot change things that quickly in the industry but in the long—term i think it is bad news for vauxhall manufacturing in the uk. it has more capacity to build cars in its own plants and does not

need these in britain. and with currency fluctuations, problems posed by brexit with freedom of movement and movement of parts. and vauxhall is not the only british—based car—maker which is facing upheaval. nissan said this week it now needs £100 million to support car manufacturing in sunderland. bmw said it might now make battery—powered minis in germany instead of britain. and ford looks like it could be shedding more than 1,000 jobs at its engine—making plant in bridgend in wales. all of these companies are demanding sweeteners from theresa may to protectjobs. and they all need to knowjust as she is in the middle of intensive and possibly divisive talks about the future trading relationship with the eu. 0ur correspondent megan paterson is in ellesmere port.

she has been gauging reactions. you can see behind me through the wire fences rows and rows of brand—new vauxhall cars and vans and behind that a factory building. the people inside that building have been worried greatly by the news today. it is uncertainty for the future and what it means the jobs here, not just the next years but next decades. the concern is psa is a french company and 14% of it is owned by the french state, and the worry here is that will mean jobs in france are protected, meaning a risk to those like here in ellesmere port and in luton. earlier we spoke to people in ellesmere port town centre, around ten minutes away. everyone was quick to say how crucial this employer is for the town and area. lots of people saying there isn't another industry here to plug the gaps ifjobs were to go. they had concern notjust for those working in the building

and their families but also small businesses in the supply chain and the cafes and shops that rely on this site being busy. over the last few months politicians and union representatives have stepped up the campaign to get guarantees for the workers here and luton to get protection for them. it looks certain now that campaign will be stepped up over the next few days. we understand the jobs here would be protected until 2020, but what happens after that is a massive uncertainty. clarity expected on monday with an announcement about the takeover, but negotiation expected to go on over the coming weeks to give people here reassurance about the future. four men have been arrested in connection with the escape of a convicted murderer in liverpool. the arrests in the hunt for shaun walmsley were made in poole in dorset on friday. walmsley went on the run last month when two armed men confronted prison officers who were guarding him

at aintree university hospital. police say none of those arrested were the escaped murderer. dan johnson has been following developments. there were armed police on the street with guns, they shot at the tyres in the car, so people knew something serious had happened. it is only now we realise that this is connected to the disappearance of sean walmsley, his escape from custody two weeks ago. dorset police ran this investigation and they have arrested four men all from liverpool in connection with his escape, and they have been handed over to merseyside police who are investigating, they will question these four men about exactly what happened, to 2a—year—olds and 225—year—old from liverpool. three others were arrested in liverpool already, two men and a woman, they happen they'll, and no sign of shaun walmsley. to the police have any

idea where he is? it does not look like it. they said this was going to bea like it. they said this was going to be a national investigation. as in as he escaped the involved police forces across the country. so brad is no surprise that forces as far away as dorset have been involved. speculation that he may have quickly gone abroad. he was serving a serious sentence, expected to do a minimum of 30 years in prison, he is a convicted murderer with gangland convictions, the kind of person who might be able to disappear quickly. it looks like the police are working on this, they are building a network, getting an understanding of who may have been involved in the escape, but no sign of shaun walmsley himself. the headlines. the dup and sinn fein begin talks aimed at forming a new power—sharing agreement after republicans experience a surge in support. president trump accuses the bama administration of tapping his phone

during the presidential election campaign. there are fears for the future of vauxhall plants in britain after a french car company which produces vehicles reportedly reaches a deal to buy general motors' european operations. a group of peers has dismissed claims the uk could face a so—called "divorce bill" of up to 52 billion pounds when it leaves the eu. the lords eu financial affairs committee says the government might not have to pay anything if there is no post—brexit deal but says concessions are likely if the government wants to secure access to eu markets. earlier, baroness kishwer falkner, the lib—dem peer and chair of the eu financial affairs sub—committee, explained the thinking behind the house of lords report. we took legal advice from a variety of experts, and where that legal advice conflict and we tested that

against our own select committee's legal adviser and came to a judgment that the two pertinent bits of law, one is article 50, everyone is familiar with that, which says that if you have two years to negotiate a withdrawal agreement and if you don't do that within two years at the end of the two—year period the treaties cease to apply. those are the words they used. then there is another treaty called bbn convention, which goes back to 1969. —— the vienna convention. that says that when parties are breaking legal obligations, withdrawing from treaties, they are still to some extent bound by existing liabilities. we look at that very clearly, and it also said they are only bound by their existing liabilities unless there are arrangements in place in that treaty. 0ur

arrangements in place in that treaty. our conclusion is yes, if there is no withdrawal agreement, there is no withdrawal agreement, the united kingdom can leave without having any legal obligations. that can be adjudicated by any court. interestingly, the government has acknowledged that there are some programmes such as the common agricultural policy, research funding, rise in 2020, that they have already committed to paying until the end of the budgetary period which was supposed to be 2020. they said even if we leave will continue to make up... this was to give confidence to farmers that payments would continue. we expect the government to define in greater detail over the next period is what other things and would expect to pay if it lost receipts in the united kingdom lost receipts from the eu. the number of people facing severe hunger worldwide has surpassed 100 million and will only worsen according to the un — unless there's

more humanitarian aid. the severe drought in somalia threatens millions of people across the country. whilst in south sudan — un agencies say 100,000 people are facing starvation and a further 1 million there are classified as being on the brink of famine. stephen 0'brien is the un's under—secretary—general and emergency relief coordinator — he's in the south sudanese capital, juba. thanks forjoining us. you are touring the area. what have you seen so far? we're in the capital having beenin so far? we're in the capital having been in the northern states. there are thousands of people who have had to wade through marshes upto hip height including a grandmother with

her grandchild, extremely malnourished, who have reached camps run by ngos which help prevent cholera and other things which killed a very small children. this child was abandoned when his father went missing after an attack on his village. there are mothers who have been raped, and there is very severe hunger. there is a lot of work going on to relieve it. there was severe famine in yemen, all the way to somalia, all of this is exacerbated by man—made crises when you get these very sere severe shocks that

make people even less resilient because they need to attend to the terrible violence and security. and so the big thing for us, as an international committee, we need to try to avoid it being the famine taking place, we want to try to avert these famines by acting early enough, that means raising enough resources to get into the full financing of the plan so that they have a basis for scaling up to the enormous levels of need to happen to help the people that are vulnerable. there are a million on the brink, maybe as many as 5.5 million on the brighterfamine maybe as many as 5.5 million on the brighter famine by the maybe as many as 5.5 million on the brighterfamine by the end of maybe as many as 5.5 million on the brighter famine by the end of this july. how would you characterise the international response so far? since this announcement, this means rising

billions, and we have very short time frame still about these diamonds. so far the step up has been very quick so that hearing south sudan 21.6 billion, so far there is 900 million in the back. but that is very small compared to the numbers that are needed. we need money, yes, we need a good plan and we have it and we are ready to scale up. we can save lives and have a real chance of averting further disaster. we also need a government to give us access to make sure we can geta to give us access to make sure we can get a peace process, and where we need protection are very vulnerable civilians. that was my next question. if more aid were to

be forthcoming, are you confident it would get to the people who need?” am, there are of course always the odd story of people who diverted or whatever, and we need to be very careful, those stories or offal —— are careful, those stories or offal —— a re often careful, those stories or offal —— are often printed, will need to be very careful not to let the very small percentage of aid that gets diverted to detract from the 99 percentage goes really well. there are already very successful channels, saving millions of lives, and because there are so many vulnerable people need to make sure we can step up and scale up. we can. i believe there will be commended response to this, and i believe we can partner with governments, but above all they need to michu we have the access and the security to get

aid agencies onto the front line that can deliver the important foods and medicines to people, particularly the young children that are severely malnourished. so we need integrated services of water, sanitation, hygiene, medicine. that is the plan. i believe it can be done, and that is why we sounded the alarm early to try to learn from the past of not being late and getting the chance to avert these diamonds rather than reacting after the event. —— avert these diamonds. —— avert the salmon. now let's get the weather. and weather system and frontal system ahead, saturday was never going to be great. further south the showers have been through central and western areas, but through the evening and overnight we dragged the showers towards the north and east

as the rain band works its way into the northern isles. later on the will be a new area of cloud cover wind and rain over the south—west quarter river ribble be chilly. the winner will be a future as we drive this rain belt further north to the wales the midlands and east anglia, blustery showers on behind. a much improved if scotland, northern ireland and the far of england as well. not only warm but also some sunshine. monday, there will be a new area of low pressure down the south—western quarter of the british isles in the first part of the day. elsewhere cloud around, some brightness, fair and dry weather, the bulk of the showers across the north and north west. this is bbc news, the headlines: the dup and sinn fein prepare to begin talks aimed at forming a new power—sharing government in northern ireland after the republicans celebrate

a surge in support. president trump accuses the obama administration of tapping his phone during the presidential election campaign. the president tweeted: this is nixon/watergate. there are fears for the future of vauxhall plants in britain after a french car company which produces peugeot vehicles reportedly reaches a deal to buy general motors' european operations. britain is not legally obliged to make a final budget payment to the eu after brexit according to a house of lords committee. downing street has described the report as a "significant contribution". now it is time for the sport. good evening. a great day of sport

with you and be stuck with football and leicester have continued their remarkable turnaround, this time beating hull. points for bravery go to bournemouth, who despite playing for bravery with ten men managed to hold manchester united to a 1—1 draw against manchester united. wayne rooney has called 0ld against manchester united. wayne rooney has called old trafford home for over a decade and jose mourinho was him and as ibrahimovic to continue to do so. no need for either of them early on. defender marcus roger, first in the league, a striker‘s finished. a lapse in concentration gifted the visitors a route back in and josh king did not waste it. the intensity went up a notch. both escaped punishment from

the referee, unlike andrew salmon. his reaction was worthy of a second yellow. half—time gave everyone a chance to settle down, well, nearly everyone. with a man advantage united pressed ahead and a chance eventually fell their way. handball from adam smith and up step slattern ibrahim of it. not the finale he would have wanted. that disappointment did not stop the reds. the lack of finishing stopped the united win, though. we played a phenomenalfirst we played a phenomenal first half and we should have been winning 3—0 and we should have been winning 3—0 and we should have been winning 3—0 and we ended the first half 1—1. that is as simple as that. who can i blame? 0urselves. nobody else. we had big chances, but as i told them at half—time in the second town we played against a different team, a

tea m played against a different team, a team with one man less, the team that was not created perfectly. i understand one man less and i understand one man less and i understand perfectly the need for one point. the 1-1 neutrals will have had an eye on leicester versus hull. it was another 3—1 win, riyadh maris scoring his first goal in open play in 28 appearances. this is a look at the other result in the premier league. it is goalless at the moment between liverpool and arsenal, three and a half minutes on the clock. crystal palace are now out of the

relegation zone. there has been a big miss for brighton today who could have leapfrogged to the top of the table. instead, they lost 3—0. newcastle are playing against huddersfield and thatis are playing against huddersfield and that is a big game as well. shrewsbury player andy rose has been taken to hospital after a clash of heads early on in their league one match against coventry. rose collided with coventry‘s nathan clarke when trying to clear a cross afterjust two minutes. the game was stopped for nearly 20 minutes. we will keep you updated as to how he is later on on bbc news. rangers are through to the semi—finals of the scottish cup. a hat—trick from joe garner

helped them beat hamilton academical 6—0 at ibrox. hamilton boss martin canning described his side's defending as inexcusable, but on another day, rangers could have had two players sent off. big occasions demand a big match temperament and what would be a testing afternoon for the referee. what would usually be a sending—off offence, the keeper handling outside the box, went undetected. hamilton also disputed whether this was a foul. martin maicon took advantage of the rangers still having 11 men. then the second—half sub joe of the rangers still having 11 men. then the second—half subjoe garner took the spotlight, scoring after just two minutes on the pitch and then he was very lucky to stay on it. to the surprise of many the referee only produced a yellow card. hamilton were not happy. but they could not blame the officials for the next two goals. first poor defending and then clint hill took the match beyond doubt. then garner p°pped the match beyond doubt. then garner normed up the match beyond doubt. then garner popped up again, seizing on another

hamilton mistake to the delight of the caretaker boss. he will hope to still be in charge for next week's old firm derby. garner will be suspended for that one. kilmarnock lost at home to motherwell and hibs beat ayr. kilmarnock lost at home to motherwell and hibs beat ayr. andy murray has won the dubai championship this afternoon beating fernando verdasco 2—0. it is his first title this year and extends his lead over novak djokovic at the top of the world rankings. novak djokovic at the top of the world rankings. aviva premiership leaders wasps beat fourth place bath. it was their worst home defeat in four years. the league leaders ran in three tries. wasps are clear at the top of the table. harlequins narrowly won at gloucester. harlequins narrowly won at gloucester. glasgow warrirors ran in seven tries

in a convincing 47—17 victory over the dragons in the pro12. glasgow had trailed by 10—0 until midway through the first half. but they recovered and steamrolled their opponents. their captain and scotland centre mark bennett scoring the pick of tries in their bonus point win. here is a quick update on the day's other matches. salford beat bottom side warrington 24-14. salford beat bottom side warrington 24—14. catalan versus widnes kicked off at five o'clock. catalan are leading 12—0 at the moment. definitly red won the grimthorpe handicap chase at doncaster today, one of the key trials ahead of next month's grand national. ridden by danny cook, he beat last year's winner and favourite the last samurai into second place. it's the 10th career

win for definitly red who is trained by brian ellison. he is now 14—1 for the national. over on bbc2 right now there's coverage of the european indoor championships in belgrade. in just over an hour britain's laura muir goes in the final of the 1500metres. she's already broken the european 3,000m and british 5,000m indoor records this year, richard kielty also goes in the 60m final at around 8 o'clock. after all the trash talk, tony bellew and david haye will go head to head tonight, the fight live on 5live from 10 o'clock. bellew, the world cruiserweight champion, is fighting for the first time as a heavyweight. and he starts tonight nearly a stone lighter than haye. everyone is looking forward to that. still goalless between liverpool and arsenal. we will have more at 6:30 p-m-, arsenal. we will have more at 6:30 p.m., join us then. good evening. sinn fein are celebrating their best ever showing in elections to the northern ireland assembly.

they've won 27 seats, just one less than the democratic unionists. sinn fein's president, gerry adams, said it was "a watershed election" and the end to a permanent unionist majority in northern ireland. the two parties now have three weeks to try to agree a new power—sharing coalition. from belfast, chris buckler reports. sinn fein believe they have changed the political picture in northern ireland. if this election was a battle in the long fight between unionism and nationalism, they are claiming victory. clearly the unionist majority in the assembly has been ended and the notion of a permanent or perpetual unionist majority has been demolished. the dup are still storm's biggest party, but they can only watch as republican add to their sizeable lead from the last election just ten

months ago. many voters were motivated by the harsh words of the campaign. at one stage the dup compared republicans to crocodiles. then they bit them back. in order to go back into government sinn fein are calling for arlene foster to step aside as first minister while a public enquiry takes place into a financial scandal led to a botched green energy scheme. it is a demand that has angered mrs foster's party. now we have got to pick up the pieces after a brutal election and the party which has got most to be concerned about is to have it repaired the damage is sinn fein. for so long the big beast of politics here, unionism is facing a fresh threat from nationalism. just months ago they seemed to be working together, but in unionist east belfast with the cs lewis square has been built in honour, there is a certain concern about what is

emerging. our whole government system is not working for the people who need it. they are up their squabbling over very little to be honest. republicans are out again in force, so they are. we should get off our backsides and go and vote. 0nce hailed as the champion of unionism, this statue stands outside stormont. today his political su ccesso rs stormont. today his political successors are on their guard and no one is sure if a deal to restore power—sharing is within their grasp. donald trump has accused the obama administration of orchestrating a plot to tap his phones in the run up to last year's presidential election. in a series of messages on twitter, president trump accused mr obama of personally authorising the alleged tapping and compared it to the watergate scandal, but offered no evidence that it had taken place. 0ur washington correspondent laura bicker reports. there is a protocol between

president, even across the political divide, a peaceful handover of power even when the pair do not get along. ina thai even when the pair do not get along. in a thai red of tweets donald trump has trashed this tradition. he accused barack has trashed this tradition. he accused ba rack 0bama has trashed this tradition. he accused barack obama of ordering a wire tap on his trump tower phone, not in one, but in four tweets. the last red, how low has president 0bama last red, how low has president obama on to attack my phones during the very secret election process. this is nixon — watergate. what a contrast to his tone during this week's address to congress. this was not the pivot to a different kind of president that many people thought. so were the trump towers phones tapped? so were the trump towers phones tapped ? the so were the trump towers phones tapped? the conservative news organisation breitbart seems to think so and it blames barack obama. but no president has the power to order a wiretap, only the fbi can do

that with a warrant from the court. president trump is now facing calls to produce proof of his claims. laura joins us from washington. what response first from the barack obama camp? we have had no official response, but there has been a response, but there has been a response from ben rhodes, his former adviser. he tweeted saying no president can order a wiretap and he said that when it came to this response from donald trump he said these measures were put in place to protect the public from the likes of a president like you, he said on twitter. it has to be pointed out that we are at a rally for donald trump's supporters. they are here gathering because they believed in him 100% and they are reacting to the protests taking place throughout the protests taking place throughout the country. however, donald trump

is dogged by this russian controversy. he lost his national security adviser after he had contact with the russian ambassador and discussed sanctions. those conversations were revealed during phone interceptions, said that would suggest his phone was tapped. this weekjeff sessions, his chief lawyer, had to step aside from being in charge of any of these russian investigations because he had had a meeting with the russian ambassador and failed to disclose it. democrats call donald trump the deflector in cheap because that is what they believe these tweets are about. the foreign secretary borisjohnson has announced that he will visit moscow in the coming weeks in an attempt to improve relations with russia. it will be the first such trip by a british minister for five years. talks will focus on british—russian relations and disagreements over russia's actions in ukraine and syria. the foreign office said the trip did not signal a change in policy towards russia. the prime minister of somalia says

over 100,000 people have died of hunger injust over 100,000 people have died of hunger in just the past two days. a drought was declared a national disaster on tuesday, the un estimates 5 million people are in need of aid and thousands have made their way to the capital in search of food. tens of thousands of people have marched in london today to protest at what they say are cuts to nhs services. hospital staff, campaigners and union representatives joined the demonstration, with labour leaderjeremy corbyn addressing the crowd. 0rganisers claim theresa may's demands on austerity in the nhs represent a real risk to patients and safety, but the department of health says extra money is being invested. the french carmaker which owns peugeot and citroen is reported to have reached an agreement to buy vauxhall from general motors. talk of a deal has raised concerns about the future of vauxhall‘s two uk factories at luton and ellesmere port which employ more than 4,000 people.

an official announcement is expected on monday. our business correspondent joe lynam reports. this box all plant is one of the more efficient car making factories in the world. 66% of the vehicles made here are exported, may lead to europe. but the workers here may have new bosses from monday when it is likely the company that makes peugeot cars, psa, confirmed it has bought vauxhall and 0pel. but with dos many dashed to me factories in europe and not enough demand, it says it is likely to have a look at which plans to keep open and that puts foxhole under the microscope. it employs just over 2000 staff at ellesmere. they make astras. it employs just over 2000 staff at ellesmere. they make astrasm it employs just over 2000 staff at ellesmere. they make astras. it will affect a lot of jobs ellesmere. they make astras. it will affect a lot ofjobs in the area in ellesmere port. there is nothing here is vauxhall close. it is really bad news. its van making factory in

luton employs 1400 people.” bad news. its van making factory in luton employs 1400 people. i am optimistic about the plant in luton, but the prospect of car manufacturing in uk will come down to the kind of deal we get out brexit. in all, vauxhall makesjust under 200,000 cars a year. ps a has the capacity to build more cars, it does not need these plans in britain and there are obstacles in the way with currency fluctuations and problems posed by brexit with freedom of movement of people and parts as well. the government says it is cautiously optimistic it will be able to limit the job losses as a result of this deal possibly by providing the kind of us yours as it gave to nissan in sunderland. we do not know what those assurances are for sure, but there are quite a few british—based car makers who will be watching very carefully. this week nissan said it now needs £100

million to support car manufacturing in the north east. bmw said it might make battery—powered mini cars in germany instead of britain and ford may be shedding more than 1000 jobs in wales. the pressure will mount on theresa may to support the automotive sector at the very time she will be entering talks with the eu over brexit. andy murray has won the dubai championships for the first time, claiming his first title in 2017. he initially struggled against spain's fernando verdasco, but eventually he won. it is his fifth career title. it is his fifth career title. there's more throughout the evening on the bbc news channel, we are back with the late news at ten o'clock. now on bbc1 its time for the news where you are. sinn fein has held the results of

the northern ireland assembly election. for the first time unionists do not have an overall majority at storm on. at a press conference this afternoon the president of sinn fein, gerry adams, spoke of the result. the elections in many ways are a watershed election and we have just started a process of reflecting on what it all means, but clearly the unionist majority in the assembly has been ended and the notion of a permanent ora ended and the notion of a permanent or a perpetual unionist majority has been demolished. we need to reflect on that, but so do the leaders of unionism, and so does everyone on this part of the island. we have

been given a very positive mandate. michelle 0'neill made it clear that what we want we will win for eve ryo ne what we want we will win for everyone and we intend to assert that mandate and to be true to the commitments which we have been given. we want to engage as quickly as possible in a process to put the institutions in place once again and that they should run on the basis that they should run on the basis that they should run on the basis that they were founded on. michelle will say a few words and then any questions you may have. later on today and tomorrow morning i intend today and tomorrow morning i intend to have a conversation with both the british government and the irish government to discuss the way forward. i have made contact with leaders of all the political parties to talk about next week. we have a period of three weeks in front of us and whilst the task is not easy, i

think it is achievable if people come at it with the right attitude. 0n come at it with the right attitude. on monday morning i will lead our team into the assembly, but we are ready to tackle what has been outstanding from previous agreements and we are ready to go back to delivering for all people. can i ta ke delivering for all people. can i take that question? first of all, we have never said that arlene foster needs to step aside before negotiations happen. arlene foster is the leader of the dup and we accept that. michelle threw her officials had been in touch with mrs foster to meet to discuss this at a level that i think is appropriate. what we have said is that there is a need for this investigation or inquiry to come to conclusions

before we could nominate her for the position of first minister, and that remains our decision. but we only say that in response to your question. if i can make a point in relation to my own role in this. i am the leader of sinn fein. i nominated martin mcguinness in his time for this position. if i am given the opportunity, i would be delighted to nominate michelle o'neill. delighted to nominate michelle 0'neill. peter robinson stood aside twice when there was controversy and took up his position again. there is a sensible way to sort all of this out. it is not that we are pointing out. it is not that we are pointing out absolute decisions, we are saying there is a scandal, there is a question over the last potentially of half a billion of tax payers brahma money, let's get that sorted out, but that is not a precondition

to the negotiations starting on monday. we have constantly sent throughout the period of the last weeks the reason we are in the situation we are in is because of the scandal and the dup's arrogance in relation to the public because of that. but we have also had failure by the dup and the british government and the irish government to implement previous agreements. there are many issues to be done, but it is important and welcome at it with the right attitude. we sought the mandate to go back and thatis sought the mandate to go back and that is what sinn fein want to do in the week ahead. if people come back with the right attitude, we could find a way forward. you have heard me on many occasions that he is not an independent arbiter, he has taken an independent arbiter, he has taken a very pro—unionist stance not only

to legacy, but also in relation to turning his mind against the will of the majority of the people in terms of brexit. i will be saying that to james when i speak to him later on today and also to mr flanagan went today and also to mr flanagan went to speak to him. members of the sinn fein leadership speaking earlier. saturday never was going to be that great day. through the evening and overnight though showers will go ever further towards the north and east as the rain band works its way into the northern isles. later on tonight there will be a new area of cloud, wind and rain in the south—western quarter. the wind is a real feature as we drive this rain ever further north to wales, east anglia and the midlands. but a much

improved state for northern ireland, scotla nd improved state for northern ireland, scotland and the north of england. 0n scotland and the north of england. on monday a new area of low pressure gets dragged down into the south—west corner of the british isles. elsewhere there is a lot of cloud around, the bulk of the showers in the north and the north—west of the british isles. this is bbc news. i'm reeta chakrabarti. the headlines: the dup and sinn fein prepare to begin talks aimed at forming a new power—sharing government in northern ireland after the republicans celebrate a surge in support. the election yesterday was in many ways a watershed election, and we have started the process of reflecting what it all means. president trump accuses the obama administration

of tapping his phone during the presidential election campaign. concerns over the impact for 4,000 vauxhall workers in britain, as a french car company reportedly reaches a deal to buy general motors' european operations. police trying to find a convicted murderer who escaped during a hospital visit in liverpool last week have arrested four men