this is bbc news. the headlines at 7pm: britain promises to stand up for gibraltar after the territory accuses spain of using brexit to forward its territorial aims. a teenage asylum seeker is fighting for his life after being attacked in south london in what police are treating as a hate crime. we believe it is a hate crime. prior to the attack being taken place the young person was asked whether from, when they said they were and asylum seeker, that is when the frenzied attack took place. nearly half of people who used the government's help—to—buy scheme to purchase a house did not need it, according to new research. a pay rise for two million people says the government as the uk's national living wage goes up. also in the next hour: at least one hundred people are reported to have been killed by a massive mudslide in southern colombia. the mud engulfed homes and roads.

hundreds of families are missing. and a shock defeat for chelsea cuts their lead at the top of the premier league to seven points. full details in sports day in half an hour here on bbc news. the government has said that britain will defend the interests of gibraltar during the brexit negotiations, following warnings that spain is attempting to use the process to regain sovereignty of the rock. the eu has suggested that a brexit deal won't cover gibraltar without a separate agreement between london and madrid. labour say it's vital the people of gibraltar aren't used as a "bargaining chip" in negotiations. richard lister reports. could this rock, looming from the mediterranean, threaten britain's future

relationship with the eu? gibraltar‘s been in british hands for more than 300 years but it voted almost unanimously to remain in the eu, giving spain hopes of taking the territory back. just this week, theresa may said that wouldn't happen. we are absolutely steadfast in our support of gibraltar and its people and its economy. our position has not changed. but the european council's position has changed and in its draft negotiating guidelines, it says, after the uk leads the union, no agreement between the eu and the uk may apply to the territory of gibraltar without the agreement between the kingdom of spain and the uk. and giving spain veto rights could mean choppy waters ahead. spain hasn't been shy of confronting britain in the past, here over fishing rights off the gibraltar coast. now its demands on the territory could be part of any future eu—uk trade deal. these are draft guidelines

but already we see spain making the moves that people expect she might have made at five minutes to midnight with an agreement ready, she is doing now, and frankly, i think it is singling out gibraltar unfairly. but madrid does have a list of grievances like the smuggling of cheap cigarettes into spain. brexit mayjust have given the spanish more leverage on that and the big question of sovereignty. spain must have tried something like 12 times to conquer or takeover gibraltar. this is something that many people in spain want. it is a matter of national pride to have gibraltar back. the letter triggering article 50 in the brexit process made no mention of gibraltar. some say it should have. it was notjust it did not mention gibraltar. it was that it only talked about one land border where the negotiations cover two land borders. it also made reference to government in terms that did not

include the fact there are, you know, gibraltar has a government as well. the overwhelming majority of people in gibraltar want to stay british and i think on that basis, we will respect the sovereignty of the people of gibraltar, respect their decision and respect the negotiating process. a process which spain wants gibraltar to be a part of. i'm joined now by the mp for the area. the geography clearly is not changing, gibraltar is staying put. so why should brexit make a difference to spain's claim of having gibraltar as part of its territory? it just creates having gibraltar as part of its territory? itjust creates an opportunity for them. and of course it was very obvious as soon as the brexit referendum was announced this was going to happen. the people of

gibraltar have been well ahead of most... not because they are madly in love with the european union, but because they were well aware there was going to be problems. they have suffered endless issues with the border. a couple of years ago the border. a couple of years ago the border was being shot overnight, it was being shot four hours and hot sun. it was a war of attrition. even as part of the eu. it was not rocket science to think they were going to early news this as upon. given that thousands of people cross between spain and gibraltar each day, would it not make more sense for gibraltar to become part of spain and therefore those who wanted to remain in the eu would get that at the same time? that makes no sense at all to me. gibraltar has been british for over 300 years, and on the principle of self—determination they have voted 99% as british, so i they get

makes any sense at all that they should have to leave the european union. i think what the people of gibraltar need to know is that they have exactly the same consideration as the irish border. and it was reg retta ble as the irish border. and it was regrettable that it was not mentioned in the prime minister's letter. it is not the end of the world. we have a similar situation in the eu parliament where i have made an official request forgery mentioned along with the irish border issue. wejust mentioned along with the irish border issue. we just need to get oui’ border issue. we just need to get our ducks in border issue. we just need to get ourducks ina border issue. we just need to get our ducks in a row and sort out... nobody is in any doubt that the uk government and meps are 100% behind supporting gibraltar, but we need to talk about how we're going to do that. clearly there will have to be talks specifically to put together an agreement regarding gibraltar over and above the one that the uk does with ee you. what do you think spain might want to see from that deal? obviously spain has quite a

lot of business interests in the uk, like santander bank. they will have to decide whether those trump gibraltar. the other thing which we meps are used to dealing with all the time, especially those on the fishing committee, is that they really do enjoy a village access to oui’ really do enjoy a village access to our fishing waters at the moment as members of the eu, and they will lose that. i think we need to call tough on those issues. let's calm it all down and say, we have things as well, if you want us to throw them on the table and rattle our sabre as we can. we seem to have lost the sound, it is not proving easy. conservative mep from the south—west and gibraltar, thank you very much. we just about on just to the point julie was trying to make. and we'll find out how this story and many others are covered in tomorrow's front pages at 10:30 and 11:30 this evening in the papers. 0ur guestsjoining me

tonight are anne ashworth, who's the associate editor at the times, and bonnie greer playwright and writer for the new european. a teenage boy has been critically injured in a gang attack in south london. it's understood the boy was set upon at a bus stop in croydon after the group discovered he was an asylum seeker. police are treating it as a hate crime. chief superintendentjeff boothe is the borough commander for croydon. he's described the attack. it was i would say if frenzied attack. a large number of people. a young person on the floor, kicking this individual repeatedly, and by all accounts member of the public asking them to stop. they continued. and it was only when the sound of police sirens and this frenzied, horrendous attack actually stopped. for me that is completely unacceptable. there is no place for this type of crime to take place. we believe it is a hate crime. prior to the attack taking place the young person was asked whether from and

when they said they were an asylum seeker, that is when that frenzied attack took place. the help to buy scheme was meant to support lower wage earners in england buy theirfirst home. but it's emerged thousands of families on high incomes have also benefited asjoe lynam now reports. but for the government's help to buy scheme, lina hannon and her husband would have needed an additional five to ten years before they could afford their own place in harrow. she does worry, though, that some high earners are also allowed to use the scheme. it does bother me a bit that some people that don't really need the scheme use the scheme. but to be fair, i think that the fact that the scheme was able to help people like me, and i know that a lot of people benefited from this scheme, it makes me feel happy. introduced four years ago to encourage house—building and help mostly first—time buyers get on the ladder, 250,000 people have bought property using the help to buy schemes.

but research suggests that existing homeowners from wealthy households have benefited as well. using official data, research found that around 4000 households england earning more than £100,000 used to the helped to buy equity loan scheme, and 20,000 households used it even though they weren't even first—time buyers. this scheme, in place, playing a valuable part in helping people get into the housing market for the first time, should only be there for first—time buyers, and really shouldn't be there for people who are earning over £100,000 per year. itjust doesn't make sense. the help to buy equity loan scheme offers buyers up to a fifth of the cost of a new—build home so they only need to provide a 5% deposit. the government says almost 400,000 people have been helped and £8.6 billion has been promised for it in england until 2021. the fact that the help to buy scheme has helped

existing and sometimes wealthy households will worry some economists. they have long seen concerns about consumer indebtedness, rising house prices and savings at an all—time record low. if the cost of living continues to rise as it has in recent weeks and months, that will make the problem even worse. joe lynam, bbc news. two million people are set for a pay rise today, as the national living wage goes up to £7.50 an hour. the change has been broadly welcomed by unions. but employers have expressed concern about the strain of additional costs, as sangita myska reports. 23—year—old liz davidson is already had opened the national living wage by his employer. he certainly notice is the difference from his previous company. i was struggling for money, it was a big concern for me. it was very much go to work, come back,

spent the night in front of the telly. now i can afford to have a social life, i can afford to do stuff in my local area. and enjoy myself a bit more. from today, all workers are 25 must be paid at least £7 50 an hour. employers are worried. many of our members were already paying their staff more than the national living wage, but for those that were not it is adding significant costs to their businesses. around £900 a year for staff, and a further £120 a year with the knock—on consequences for national insurance payments as well. much of that cost will be absorbed when the businesses themselves rather than passing it on in the form of higher prices. and that is not the only change. controversial new business rates come into force today. while most companies will pay less, some, especially in the south—east, face higher bills. and a

new system for captivating car taxes starts. hybrid car owners will pay more than they did. with me in the studio is katherine chapman, who is the director of the living wage foundation. how much of a difference will this increased to £7 50 make? it is great to see an increase to the minimum wage rates. that will benefit low paid workers. but we worked with over 3000 employees who are already going further than this minimum and paying a real living wage. it is a real living wage because it is based on what it actually costs to live in the uk, it is a separate calculation to what has been increased today, and the rates are £8 45 in the uk, £9 75 in london. why is your rate significantly higher than the government ‘s? it changed its name to the living wage not long ago. government ‘s? it changed its name to the living wage not long agom is around £2 higher than the current government minimum wage. and that is because it is based on what it

actually costs to live. it is calculator is completed separately to the minimum wage and is based on a basket of goods and services, what the public think is needed for a decent unacceptable standard of living, and that includes things like food, transport, childcare, all those everyday living costs, to make sure that when someone is earning a real living wage cannot struggling to get by the end of the month. what do you say to employers who say that going up to £7 50, never mind your rate, is difficult for them? we have businesses that are already choosing to be our rates, they are voluntary, and researched the says that 93% of those businesses report real benefits from those higher wages, and that is things like better staff retention. people stay longer and living wage employers because they know that their employer cares about them and looks after their well—being. absenteeism rates go down. there are real business benefits to paying it as well as it being the right thing to do. benefits to paying it as well as it being the right thing to dom benefits to paying it as well as it being the right thing to do. it does bite into profits? arab lawyers we

have spoken to did not find that. they look more broadly and how the business operates, and so they are investing in their staff, seeing it more as an investment at a cost. in reducing better training, looking at howjobs are designed so that employees can play multiple rules, for example. where does that leave people who are on in work benefits if they are still earning £7 50? how much better off with vb, with the country b, if you're not having to pay in work benefits to people because they are on a higher wage? it is all about the balance of responsibility between the state and the employer, but i think in these challenging times and with inflation set to rise, and income set to drop for those on low income families, it is more important than ever that employers make sure they pay a wage thatis employers make sure they pay a wage that is enough to live on. and illustrate the difference, it is about £45 a week in the uk, and £95 more a week on our rates, and that isa

more a week on our rates, and that is a significant amount for people on low incomes. what is the difference between a small player and a medium or large employer who does not have that kind of give in their profit margins? firstly, ours isa their profit margins? firstly, ours is a voluntary rate, so we work with businesses who can afford it. but it if i've % of our employers are small firms, and that ranges from pie shops, book shops, pubs, they are paying it because those small firms more than anyone realised the value of having employees working there who want to be part of the team, who are more motivated, and they want to value the staff and be seen to value their staff. if we are supposed to make sure that wages keep pace with inflation, what do you anticipate the national living wage would need to be? because our rates are based on the cost of living, they would increase as inflation increases, mickey sure everyone who is on them would be able to meet those higher living costs. 0bviously government's

national living wages will increase but will not take into account those inflationaryjumps, but will not take into account those inflationary jumps, that is but will not take into account those inflationaryjumps, that is why it is more important than ever that employers make sure their employees earn a wage they can live on. like you very much. nottinghamshire police say they're becoming increasingly concerned for the safety of two young children who are believed to have been this is samantha baldwin, not seen since monday. she is believed to have abducted her two sons in the hours after a court ordered they be removed from her care. the police say nine—year—old louis madge and six—year—old dylan are at risk of harm from her and they are asking the public to help find them. samantha went missing, having left court shortly after 11am. we are working on the notion that they remain together. we are concerned that samantha poses a risk to the boys and we have a 100 strong team of dedicated officers working around the clock to trace her and return

the children safely. the two boys have been made wards of court. this is now an abduction enquiry. samantha baldwin was last seen here in nottingham city centre on monday. the police are not ruling out the possibility that somebody else might be involved and could be harbouring her. two women arrested on suspicion of assisting an offender have now been released on bail. the headlines: the uk says it will stand up for the interests of gibraltar after the territory accused spain of using brexit to forward its territorial aims. a teenage asylum seekers fighting for his life after being attacked in the south london bus stop in what police are treating as a hate crime. nearly

half the people who use the government's help to buy scheme to purchase a house did not need it according to new research. bbc news has learned thatjust 5% of prison officers in england and wales will benefit from new allowances of up to £5,000. the ministry ofjustice announced the new payments two months ago after criticism that low pay and morale were leading to a crisis in the prison service. the prison officers association has described the situation is unacceptable. mark fairhurst from the prison officers association said giving some staff pay allowances, and not others, was demoralising their members, and failing to get to the heart of recruitment problems. those of us who are experienced are very demoralised, because we haven't had a pay rise in over seven years. those new recruits, for example, a new recruit at berwyn, the newjail in wrexham, will be receiving £21,000 a year, yet someone with the same level of experience as them, with only ten weeks in the job, working in brixton, will be

receiving £31,000 a year. now that's no incentive to stay in the job. they need to tackle the real issue. the real issue we can't retain staff is because of the violence, because of the working conditions and because of the severe lack of support from management, when we deal with that violence. the other issue is the starting salary throughout the country, apart from the 31 sites identified, simply isn't sufficient enough. it doesn't compete with other industry. the columbian president has said that over a hundred people are now dead following a mudslide in the south of the country. red cross officials

said more than one—hundred people have been injured as swollen rivers and heavy rains sent mud onto homes and roads in the city of mocoa late last night. police and rescue teams are at the scene, but their efforts are being hampered by adverse weather conditions. it is on the planes before the amazon and the new city is accessed 45 hours by car, but i'm sure the roads are not accessible at all. they will have to fly in supplies, whatever is needed. there is an army base there, and that is the main source for rescue workers at the moment. they are struggling there to find people alive. a man whose wife was murdered in mauritius six years ago has returned to the island to seek more information about the killing. john mcareavey from northern ireland has told the bbc that he's prepared to "go to the ends of the earth" to ensure thatjustice is achieved for his wife. michaela mcareavey was found strangled in a bath at a luxury hotel 12 days after the couple's wedding.

no—one has been convicted of her murder. officials in australia have been warning that swollen rivers are continuing to threaten tens of thousands of people in queensland and new south wales. the police commissioner in the city of rockhampton in queensland said the flooding would be the worst in nearly a century. the floods come in the aftermath of tuesdays category four tropical cyclone debbie. authorities in australia have warned local residents, stranded by floodwaters, to remain vigilant in the aftermath of a powerful tropical cyclone. as swollen rivers continue to rise, threatening tens of thousands of people living near major rivers in queensland and new south wales. cyclone debbie hit the eastern coast on tuesday, with winds up to 260 kilometres an hour, causing major damage to buildings, roads and crops. it's unbelievable, mate. it's picked it up like a big eskie

and whipped it across the road. the country's prime minister, malcom turnbull, confirmed fatalities in the wake of the storm. two women in new south wales have died as a result of these floods. our thoughts and prayers are with their families. this is going to be a tough time for them. military and rescue teams have been mobilised to help with the emergency, rescuing stranded people and distributing supplies, such as food, water and fuel. 0fficials stress the danger will continue for some time. we hope that, by the end of the day, we will see easing of those conditions and improvement into tomorrow. but it's not over yet. after three days of chaos and destruction, the people of queensland and new south wales are left with the damage and trying to rebuild their lives. demonstrators in paraguay have set fire to the country's congress in protest against a bill that would let the president seek re—election. the head of the main opposition party says an activist had been shot dead.

the country's constitution limits the president to a single 5—year term. but the sitting president horacio cartes is trying to remove the restriction and run for re—election. greg dawson reports. this was a night of violence in paraguay that has followed months of speculation about the country's future. the protesters were directing their anger at the riot police and politicians, who they believe are steering this country towards dictatorship. hours earlier, a secret vote had taken place here to approve a new bill, which could allow president cartes to run for another term of government. the offices of lawmakers were set alight, with computers and tvs becoming missiles. reports say dozens of people, including police and politicians, were injured. this is the man at the centre of the dispute.

horacio cartes came to power in 2013, but paraguayan presidents have been banned from re—election since 1992 to try and stop a return to authoritarian regimes in the country. president ca rtes wants the restriction removed. trouble began earlier in the day, with tears and tear gas on the streets of the capital. rubber bullets were also fired at demonstrators. translation: the people of paraguay can fight against these rubber bullets. they've installed a dictator in this country. the bullets against paraguayans will soon be metal. the controversial bill still needs further approval, with another vote in the congress. that was due to happen on saturday, but has now been postponed as lawmakers and the president appealfor calm. music often provides an escape from the real world.

but in hull, one sound installation aims to give listeners a better connection to their surroundings. the work celebrates the humber bridge by incorporating sounds made by the structure. visitors can listen to the music as they walk across the bridge. lucy hester reports from the uk's city of culture. here in leeds, something magical is taking place. musicians from 0pera north are putting the finishing touches to a recording which will evoke the essence of one of yorkshire's most iconic sites, the humber bridge. many of us will have driven across the bridge, taking in the sights of the humber river. this unique project is hoping to inspire people to walk along its mile—long length and get lost in incredible sounds. 0pera north is working with norwegian composers, jan bang and arve henriksen, to create this musical—guided walk. it's a fantastic construction. it's so much bigger than i expected.

it's been interesting to walk across the bridge together with arve and to actually hear the sound of the bridge in itself. meanwhile, the opera north orchestra is recording its part. it's a truly beautiful sound produced by top—class musicians. how could we blend different instruments into that and then building melodies on top of it or chords or sounds? the music just felt like it was like a natural blood running through your veins. some of these musicians are using their instruments in a very unusual way. the opera north chorus also has a part to play in creating the soundscape. it's very atmospheric. and part of the problem is that we only know our bits and there's at least seven other layers, as far as i can tell. so i have no idea what the end

product is going to be. the finished piece will be heard through headsets as people walk across the bridge. what's particularly amazing is that it makes you look at everything completely differently when you're listening as well. it creates a completely — you look at everything much more carefully. it's really great. the artist, gilbert baker, who created the rainbow flag that became an international symbol for gay rights, has died. he was 65. baker was asked to come up with a flag design for the lgbt community in 1978 by harvey milk, who was california's first openly gay elected official. now you may remember the story of the brightly coloured car that's causing consternation in certain quarters for spoiling the view in the picturesque cotswold village of bidbury. its elderly owner peter maddox was criticised for parking outside his own cottage. today a hundred strong convoy of fellow yellow car owners from around britain have

driven through the village in a very bright show of support for the 84 year old. here's alice bouverie. it was a day to celebrate all things yellow. an act of solidarity. 0ver 100 yellow cars driving through the cotswolds, coming from as far afield as north yorkshire to join in the rally. they came in support of local pensioner peter maddox, who until earlier this year had parked his love and yellow car outside his home. until, that is, someone vandalised it. it was apparently spoiling the view of the picture postcard village. it was a sad moment for him. he got up early in the morning and find the car with rock and windows and scratches. peter is not a man to make a fuss, so he sold his car and replaced it with a grey one, one that blends in with a grey one, one that blends in with a grey one, one that blends in with a background of this famous view. but other indignant yellow

ca rd view. but other indignant yellow card drivers took up the fight on his behalf. quite simply, when i saw that his car had been vandalised, and it is so angry and upset. because of the reasons why and they said was a blot on the landscape. and the five years of pensioner, i felt something had to be done. i just had a little idea and i put forward to a few friends and has mushroomed from there. and it clearly made peter's day. how do you like yellow cars? lovely. do you have a favourite? i have. the lovely finale to this is that a car company has agreed to name a paint after peter, so he will forever be immortalised in maddox yellow. now let's get the weather.