this is bbc news. i'm rachel schofield. the headlines at apm: the un security council is meeting to discuss tuesday's deadly gas attack in syria. western powers believe assad's forces used chemical weapons to kill more than 70 people. this doesn't look like the work of terroristsment this doesn't look like the work of the opposition. this bears all the hallmarks of the assad regime and the use of chemical weapons is a war crime. jeremy corbyn says labour's national executive committee will review ken livingstone‘s comments since he was suspended. other senior labour figures slam the party's decision not to expel him. i feel ashamed that once again my party is being dragged into a row about anti—semitism and the way ken livingstone has handled this inquiry he showed no contrition. he has not apologised. the duke and duchess of cambridge and prince harryjoined families of the victims of the westminster terror attack at

a "service of hope". also in the next hour, no—one is in the driving seat. the first driverless vehicle to be tested on britain's roads — how will it fare on london's busy streets? and the showjumper nick skelton, who became britain's second—oldest olympic gold medallist in rio last year announces his retirement. good afternoon and welcome to bbc news. the uk's ambassador to the un has laid the blame for the deaths of at least 70 people in northern syria on president assad's forces.

speaking to the un security council, matthew rycroft said the deaths appeared to result from a chemical attack by the syrian government. he added that — if proven — any use of chemical agents would constitute a war crime. this bears all the hallmarks of the say sad regime and the use of chemical weapons is a war crime. : make no mistake this regime seems intent on making a mockery of the russian—backed ceasefire. russian—backed ceasefire. russia has blocked council action claiming that we might undermine the process. yet the only thing undermining the process is assad, the very man they seek to protect. russia deployed the full weight of its armed forces to help him. they reduced aleppo to ruins and displaced hundreds of thousands of men, women and children, all in the

name of fighting terrorism. and what does russia get as repayment? assad humiliates russia in the eyes of the world by intensifying his attacks, by reducing the ceasefire to rubble. assad humiliates russia by showing just how empty syria's promise was to re m ove just how empty syria's promise was to remove all its chemical weapons. if russia is to restore its credibility, they will need to join us credibility, they will need to join us in condemning this attack, and in urging the opcw to investigate it as soon as possible, they willjoin us in calling for the fullest support and co—operation for the investigation team, they will help, not hinder our efforts to strengthen accountability through the vital work of thejoint accountability through the vital work of the joint investigative mechanism, there can be no further delay in fully staffing the leadership of that mechanism, and it must have the right technical and analytical capacity to take on the

task ahead. if russia fails to do so, if russia falls back on its old ways, defending the indefensible, we will not be deterred. the united kingdom, with our allies, will continue to seek justice kingdom, with our allies, will continue to seekjustice for the victims of chemical weapons attacks in syria and elsewhere, we will continue to pursue other avenues for action. european union sanctions announced last month show we can still take steps to bring rids to account and the use of chemical weapons brings consequences. let's get more on this with our un correspondent nick bryant, who's live in new york for us now. some very strong words this afternoon? they were really strong words. he was critical of russia and china because in february they vetoed a resolution that would have

punished the assad regime for using chemical weapons. so he said that sent a message of encouragement to the assad regime who carried out this attack that they could do so with impunity. he was critical of the russians for saying that they we re the russians for saying that they were tying the hands of diplomats at the united nations through their blocking tactics, their could be instructionism over syria in the security council, for many years now, the russians vetoed seven relultions and the chin vetoed six resolutions on syria. he says the world looks at the un and wonders why nothing was going on? he said russian trance generals. given that impasse, what hope is there of any movement on this issue at the un? well, the british and the french drafted a regulars lution and the americansjoined drafted a regulars lution and the americans joined and they made the

resolution stronger. they gave it operational teeth. one thing they are demanding along with an investigation into this latest attack is the syrian military hand over its flight logs and give investigators access to syrian air bases. the russians are opposed to that. they have expressed reservations and objections to the d raft reservations and objections to the draft in its present form. their negotiations will take place over the course of the day. what the british have been saying is they have put forward a resolution they are trying to get passed, they are not putting forward a regulars solution to get a russian and chinese veto so they can shame them on the international stage, they wa nt on the international stage, they want a resolution that will pass, but russia has a tendency of protecting the assad regime at the united nations and it is by no means certain even if the language is watered down that the russians and the chinese will support it. indeed, the chinese will support it. indeed, the chinese will support it. indeed, the chinese who have been speaking we re the chinese who have been speaking were critical of the british ambassador‘s comments. he said it was wrong to point the finger at

russia and china over their obstructionism and intransigence at the united nations and he said that would have an effect on the peace talks that are under way. so what we're seeing at the united nations frankly is same old, same old. this dynamic within the security council, britain, the uk, sorry the uk, the us, and france on one side and the russians and the chinese on the other. it is one of the reasons why so lilacs has come out of the united nations security council for the last six years on syria because of this blockage, this deadlock, this gridlock at the security council. nick, thank you very much indeed. well our correspondent wyre davies has the latest on the attack in syria — you may find some of the pictures in his report upsetting. the reverberations of what happened in the syrian town of khan sheikhoun are being felt around the world. distressing images of civilians, many of them children, suffering from the appalling effects of a gas or chemical attack. unable to breathe, choking and foaming at the mouth. dozens were killed and for many it

marked a new low in a conflict that has already seen so much suffering and depravity. what we've seen yesterday has horrified all of us. i can say this is a politician, but first of all as a mother. and the images we have seen yesterday from syria remind us all that here we have a responsibility. to unite for real with a serious engagement, the international community, the regional players, but also the syrian parties, to make peace. syrian opposition groups and western powers have unequivocally blamed the regime of bashar al—assad for the attack that as these images show, continued even as the victims are being treated in khan sheikhoun's only hospital. this security guard said that about an hour after the initial strike, government aircraft deliberately bombed the hospital itself, putting it out of service. the syrian government and its chief ally, russia,

have been equally vehement in their denials. this was, says a russian military spokesman, the direct consequence of an airstrike on a militant weapons factory that must have included nerve gas or chemical weapons. and for that, says the government, the opposition bears all responsibility. that argument isn't being bought in western capitals and at a special conference on syria in brussels where many accuse the assad regime of committing a war crime. all the evidence i have seen suggests that this was the assad regime who did it in the full knowledge that they were using illegal weapons in a barbaric attack on their own people. with rescuers frantically dousing survivors in water to wash off chemicals, and graphic eyewitness accounts of what happened, many experts conclude this could only have been carried out by the regime. there is no indication that the moderate syrian rebels

were involved in chemical production, particularly if something difficult to do like sarin. as government airstrikes against rebel areas continue, some victims are being treated in neighbouring turkey. the assad regime has been emboldened by russian military support and a reluctance by critics to take meaningful action against it. even after the horror of what happened at khan sheikhoun, that is unlikely to change. labour's leaderjeremy corbyn says the party is to launch a new probe into ken livingstone's behaviour in the wake of his suspension from the party over controversial comments regarding adolf hitler and zionism. the former mayor of london was yesterday suspended from standing for office or representing labour for two years for comments he made about adolf hitler and zionism. he has already served one year of the suspension and remains a member of the party. in a statement mr corbyn said,

"ken livingstone's comments have been grossly insensitive, and he has caused deep offence and hurt to thejewish community. it is deeply disappointing that, despite his long record of standing up to racism, ken has failed to acknowledge or apologise for the hurt he has caused. earlier labour's deputy leader, tom watson, called his party's decision not to expel ken livingstone following his comments about adolf hitler and zionism "incomprehensible". he said labour was indulging mr livingstone, with an outcome that — in his words — "shames us all. i feel ashamed that once again my party is being dragged into a row about anti—sem ma tim and the way ken livingstone has handled this inquiry, he showed no contrition. he has not apologised. he seems to be drunk on his own infamy. he caused offence to many members of the

jewish community and it is unacceptable. and the shadow brexit secretary sir keir starmer insisted mr livingstone should have been expelled. labour has got a zero tolerance in relation to anti—semitism. he think he should have been expelled rather than suspended. we are hoping to speak to ken livingstone in a short while. a service of hope and reconciliation has taking place in westminster abbey, a fortnight after the terror attack near the houses of parliament. khalid masood drove a car into pedestrians on westminster bridge, killing three people, and fatally stabbed a police officer, before he was shot dead. the duke and duchess of cambridge and prince harry havejoined about two thousand people attending

the multi—faith service. our royal correspondent, nicholas witchell, reports. two weeks ago the area around the westminster abbey was caught up in the chaos of that afternoon. nearby on westminster bridge there were casualties. people mown down as they enjoyed the sights of london, closer stilljust inside the gates of the houses of parliament, there were gunshots. and a murder of an unarmed police officer, one of the four innocent people who died that day. two weeks later at westminster abbey, a service, quite deliberately not a memorial service, it is felt to be too soon after the event for that, but what the abbey described as a service of hope. leaders of the different faith communities from across the uk were joined in the congregation by the duke and duchess of cambridge and prince harry along with members of the emergency services, some of the bereaved families and some of those who were injured.

the violent assault two weeks ago against londoners and visitors to this city from around the world and the killing of a police constable on duty at the palace of westminster have shocked people everywhere. at a time of sorrow, a time when we are tempted to despair, may we find hope. the humanity of those who came to the aid of the injured and dying was remembered. the duke of cambridge read from the parable of the good samaritan. which of these three do you think was a neighbour to the man who fell into the hands of the robbers? he said, "the one who showed him mercy". jesus said to him, "go and do likewise". in the name of the father... in his address the dean

of westminster recalled that among those directly affected by the attack were people from britain and 12 other nations. he posed the question so many have asked, why? what happened a fortnight ago leaves us bewildered. what could possibly motivate a man to hire a car and take it from birmingham to brighton to london, and then drive it fast at people he had never met, couldn't possibly know, against whom he had no personal grudge and no reason to hate them, and then ran at the gates of the palace of westminster to cause another death? it seems likely that we shall never know. candles were lit as a symbol of the light which can never be extinguished by the darkness of terror.

and prayers were offered from across the different faiths pledging respect between different communities. the headlines: the headlines: the unl security council is holding an emergency debate on tuesday's deadly gas attack in syria. the western powers believe president assad's forces used chemical weapons to kill more than 70 people. jeremy corbyn has said labour's national executive committee will review ken livingstone's comments in the wake of his suspension from the party. the duke and duchess of cambridge attended a special service at westminster abbey for the victims of the westminster terror attack. britain's second oldest olympic gold

medal is to end his 43 year career. nick skelton will retire in may having won gold in rio. with severe thunderstorms on the horizon, play has been suspended at augusta with less tha n has been suspended at augusta with less than 24 hours left before the start of the masters. alastair cook will miss the first cou nty alastair cook will miss the first county championship match of the new season for essex on friday because ofa hip season for essex on friday because of a hip injury. season for essex on friday because ofa hip injury. i season for essex on friday because of a hip injury. i will be back with more after 4.30pm. a couple who want to take their sick baby son to an american hospital for treatment could give evidence at a high court hearing. specialists at great ormond street hospital in london think it is time to stop providing life support treatment to eight—month—old charlie gard. doctors say charlie, who suffers from a rare genetic condition and has brain damage, should move to a palliative care regime. court order correspondent is at the

high court. yes, both of charlie's parents have given evidence to the court this afternoon. his father had one of his son's toys in his top pocket as he gave evidence. he was asked, "are you charlie's father?" he said, "charlie's proud father." he said, "my son is the apple of my eye and i would do anything for him and i want him to be given this chance. he deserves a chance." he was asked whether he thought this treatment might turn his son into a normal little boy and he said he'd love to think so, but didn't think it would, but went on to say, he doesn't deserve to die because he will not be like another little boy running around. he was asked whether there was anything he wanted to say to the judge and he said, "i just plead that you please give him a chance." then charlie's mother gave evidence. and she said that she and her

partner spent 18 hours a day at their son's bed—side. she said that in terms of his life, did she think he was suffering? she said that she didn't think he was suffering otherwise she wouldn't be there now. she was asked what is the purpose for pursuing the treatment? she said to give charlie a chance to improve and geta to give charlie a chance to improve and get a better quality of life, but she accepted that it would be a cure, not, not be a cure sorry, but a treatment and earlier in the day, the court had heard from a doctor at great or monday street hospital who was asked if charlie was responsive to his surroundings in any purposeful way and he replied no, he said it was difficult to be sure if charlie was in pain and he said his condition had deteriorated since he had come to the hospital. he gave details of charlie's medical condition and he said that his illness was not just condition and he said that his illness was notjust irvery remembersable, it was progressive.

thejudge will hear remembersable, it was progressive. the judge will hear further evidence on friday when he has heard the evidence, he will have to make a decision as to what is in charlie's best interests. daniel, thank you very much. a jury has concluded that 22—year—old cerys yemm was unlawfully killed by 34—year—old matthew williams, at a hostel in caerphilly county. the inquest also concluded that williams died a "sudden unexpected death following a struggle against restraint." let's cross to our correspondent caroline evans in newport. the inquest lasted over three weeks and thejury the inquest lasted over three weeks and the jury heard from over 40 witnesses about the circumstances surrounding the deaths. both died in

2014 at the this bed and breakfast where matthew williams had been placed by the council after being released from prison two weeks earlierment they heard he had come out of prison shortly afterwards he met cerys and on the night they died she had gone back with him to the bed and breakfast after failing to get a taxi home. much of the evidence here has been graphic. her death was brutal, but the families have sat here throughout and listened and this is what they had to say after the verdicts. throughout the inquest we have been searching for answers to our questions as to how her murder which has so deaf taughted our family could take place in our community and where the agencies responsible for protecting the public from violent for protecting the public from viole nt offenders could for protecting the public from violent offenders could not prevent this awful event from occurring we

will never know whether more timely intervention by the police would have saved cerys' night that night. we have not sought to excuse our son's actions, but tried to understand them. in the aftermath of the event, there was allegations of cannibalism. these are unfounded. matthew needed long—term support and treatment for many years but this was not available either in prison or in the community. we are surprised that the health board have chose to play no part in this process. in our view, the evidence exposed clearing failings in the mental health, housing and criminal justice system. so both families there raising questions about the actions and policies of the agencies involved with matthew williams after his release from prison and on the night that they both died. his family, unhappy that the jury were not asked

to express views on that, saying that they were now consider the next steps to be taken, cerys' family say they feel there is a risk that offenders could be housed alongside vulnerable young people. they're calling on the council to demolish the hotel. rachel. a man spared jailfor beating his wife after telling a court he would lose an offer to play professional cricket is to have his sentence reviewed. 34—year—old mustafa bashir was given an 18 month suspended sentence at manchester crown court in march for the assault. he was said to have beaten his wife with a cricket bat and forced her to drink bleach. after the sentencing, judge richard mansell qc was criticised by domestic abuse campaigners after saying the victim was not vulnerable as she was a graduate. mr bashir‘s sentence will be reviewed on friday. a toddler is in hospital with life—threatening injuries,

after being bitten by a dog in a park in chatham in kent. neighbours say the victim is a two—year—old girl. two people have been arrested. the dog was shot dead by police last night. our correspondent daniel boettcher is at the high court. members of the european parliament have voted in favour of taking a tough stance on brexit negotiations setting so—called red lines that can't be crossed. there were testy exchanges as the parliament's brexit negotiator said that brexit is a stupidity which was caused by a cat fight inside the conservative party and that britain will one day ask to rejoin the eu. nigel farage of ukip accused politicians from other countries of being nasty and vindictive. our europe correspondent damian grammaticas sent this report. a handshake offered from the eu's chief negotiator. smiles in return from the architect of brexit. but then harsh realities began to be laid out. the uk told it cannot expect special

access to the eu's single market. i have to clarify, this will not happen. cherry—picking will not happen. a state outside of the european union cannot have the same or better conditions than a state inside of the european union. what is expected is that the uk will pay its bills. it's like moving house, said the leader of the socialist group. "the gas bill, the electricity, it all has to be settled", said gianni pittella. just a week since article 50 was triggered, this may be a foretaste of things to come. nigel farage accused the eu of making impossible demands. vindictive and nasty, he called it. you're behaving like the mafia. you think we're a hostage, we're not. we're free to go. groans at the mafia comparison stopped him mid—flow. then this, from the parliament's

italian president. "i'm sorry, mr farage", interrupted antonio tajani, but saying this parliament is behaving like the mafia is unacceptable". 0k, ok, all right. michel barnier, the man who will have to keep negotiations calm, said he will not seek to punish the uk, only ask that it live up to its financial obligations. and, he said, "it will have to agree the separation terms before trade talks can begin". the sooner we agree to the principles of an orderly withdrawal, the sooner we can prepare our future relations. a different future was laid out, too, where a young generation of britons want to rejoin the eu. a different future was laid out, too, where a young generation of britons want to rejoin the eu. a young generation that will see brexit for what it really is — a catfight in the conservative party that got out of hand.

a loss of time, a waste of energy, and, i think, a stupidity. but for now the eu is readying in what it says will be a tough negotiating position. let's return to whatjeremy corbyn said about ken livingstone and that new probe into mr livingstone's behaviour in the wake of his further suspension from the party over controversial comments regarding adolf hitler and zionism. mr corbyn said, "ken livingstone's comments have been grossly insensitive and he caused great offence and hurt to the jewish community. it is deeply disappointing that despite his long record of standing up to racism ken has failed to acknowledge or apologise for the hurt he has caused." well, we can talk now to ken livingstone himself who joins us from north london. good afternoon to you. hi there. now, looking at this

statement from jeremy corbyn, it talks of consideration now by the national executive committee of your comments and actions. what do you know about that? well, nothing, i only know what you've just said. i was told it about an hour, but the simple fact is this, i have been suspended for 11 months, a huge investigation by the labour party, three days of hearings, covering 20 hours and at the end of it, i suspect the reason i wasn't expelled from the labour party was the labour pa rty‘s from the labour party was the labour party's barrister was saying to them at their private session when they decided on their verdict that if you expel ken livingstone, you will go forjudicial review expel ken livingstone, you will go for judicial review and expel ken livingstone, you will go forjudicial review and you haven't got a cat in hell's chance of winning. a britishjudge will not say that it is wrong to state a historical truth. so the fact that you are awe now having your actions referred onwards for another investigation apparently makes you think what? well, i mean,

basically just look at this, this makes you think what? well, i mean, basicallyjust look at this, this is last week's ederks of the jewish news. it says they're expelling me. it says i was misquoted and actually at the end congratulates me for actually drawing attention to the holocaust because a lot of kids are growing up not knowing that. i can't recall the numbers of jewish growing up not knowing that. i can't recall the numbers ofjewish people who come up to me on the street and said, "don't these mps know their history? we know what you said is true." i don't feel offended if someone says true." i don't feel offended if someone says in 1938, the british government signed a deal with hitler that allowed him to keep the occupied territories of check slovakia. no one who isjewish should feel embarrassed that 80 yea rs should feel embarrassed that 80 years a group of zionists took a deal with hitler because you could make the justification if they hadn't done the deal the 66,000 dues that were moved to palestine would have ended up in the gas chamber. i didn't even criticise the deal. yet the word that you're hearing from

colleagues, regardless of the historical details, are antagonistic, crass, insensitive, is it not the case that one can get bogged down in historical detail, but the point being that what you've said for many people is just territory thaw don't want to wade into? if i can territory thaw don't want to wade into? ifi can go back andjust territory thaw don't want to wade into? if i can go back and just not do the interview finks because it waste add lot of labour party's time. what caused the problem is 39 labour mps after i did that interview were demanding my suspension. some of them said i was treating that hitler was a zionist, some said i was a nazi apologist. if you went on thejewish chronicle website, it didn't say i said that hitler was a diddon us, there was a statement that said that the dues we re statement that said that the dues were like nazis. a week later the jewish chronicle had a story saying isaid it jewish chronicle had a story saying i said it wasn't anti—semitic to hate the dues of israel. labour's 11

month investigation couldn't find any evidence to support those accusations. there is an opportunity to apologise and to make it right and to soothe things for people who have been offended and shami chakrabarti have been offended and shami chakra barti says i'm have been offended and shami chakrabarti says i'm horrified by ken livingstone's lack of contrition, the former labour leader ed miliband, tweeting, "i am appalled that even now, ken shows no real remorse." i can't recall in the last 11 months a jewish person coming up to me and saying, "what you said offended me." ."s what caused offence, if anyone has been offended i apologise on behalf of those labour mps that lied in their tweets and their posts on their website. they caused a lot of offence, but they did it deliberately to undermine jeremy and some conspiracy they were owists are

saying the reason that the right—wing labour party machine put off the hearing for 11 months so it coincided with the launch of labour's campaign for local government was to damage the party again. it is odd to think it has taken 11 months for the hearing to ta ke taken 11 months for the hearing to take place. you were saying you have had support from people in thejewish community but this afternoon we have heard from a rabbi who said she hopesjews will leave the labour party unless ken livingstone is kicked out.|j wish you could get her on to a debate with me because i would like to ask her, did the zionists sign a deal with hitler? it was very controversial at the time. our political correspondent is at westminster. listening to that

interview with ken livingstone it is very raw. there a sense this is a political argument that is not going to go away quickly. it has not gone away quickly. these comments were made about this time last year and it has not gone one of the reasons is that ken livingstone has not apologised for anything he said and he stands by all the original remarks that he made. that has been the big issue, the key part of this story and why his critics have been so angry over story and why his critics have been so angry over the course of the last year. you mentioned the statement from jeremy corbyn this afternoon. we should revisit that because it explains the whole situation. the value to acknowledge the heart caused, jeremy corbyn said is the reason he is so disappointed. he saidi reason he is so disappointed. he said i have not interfered with the disciplinary process and respect the independence of the party's

disciplinary bodies but his subsequent comments and the fact he keeps repeating them i think has caused so much anger within the party. that is where we are today. let us not get into the ins and outs of labour party rules because they are terribly complicated but the subsequent comments that ken levine and has made will be referred to labour's governing body and it will be for them to decide whether to push that onto another disciplinary panel. it is only the disciplinary panel. it is only the disciplinary panel that could expel ken livingstone so we will see that will happen but there will not be a meeting of the governing body and tell me this thing is likely to rumble on. hello. this is bbc news. the headlines: the un security council is meeting to discuss the suspected chemical weapons attack in syria that killed at least 70 people. the us, britain and france have put forward a resolution blaming president assad's forces for using chemical weapons,

a charge denied by the syrian government and its ally, russia. labour leaderjeremy corbyn says ken livingston could face a fresh labour party investigation after avoiding expulsion over his comments that adolf hitler supported zionism. the former mayor of london insists his remarks were misinterpreted. the duke and duchess of cambridge and prince harry have attended a "service of hope" to remember those killed and injured in the westminster attack. the dean of westminster praised the unity of britons and londoners in the aftermath of the attack. members of the public are being given the opportunity to test a driverless vehicle for the first time in the uk. around 100 people will travel in a prototype shuttle along a two mile route, in greenwich in london, over the next three weeks. now the sport. "i'm not getting any younger",

the words of nick skelton as the olympic showjumping champion brings to an end a glittering, 43—year career. skelton, who's 59, won gold at the rio games last summer on his horse big star to add to a team gold he won at london 2012. he had returned from a neck injury that temporarily halted his career 16 years ago. in a statement skelton said it was a "difficult decision" but the sport had given him "more than he could have hoped for". our reporter lizzie greenwood hughes said the news is almost as much about the horse big star who's also retiring, as it is about it's famous rider. he always said when that horse retired he would retire and i said to him recently did part of him wish the horse was 16? the horse is about 13, did he wish the horse was 16 or 17 so they could say that was it and they had done it and they do not have to compete? he has barely done much competing since then. he did not want anyone else to ride that horse.

i heard word on the grapevine recently that the horse was not quite right so i wondered if this might be coming. he is a stallion so they can make a lot of money for him at stud but nick skelton does not have anything to prove. former england captain alastair cook will miss the first county championship match of the new season for essex because of a hip injury. cook was cleared to play for his county in the opening round of fixtures along with other centrally contracted england players, and was due to face international team mate james anderson on friday when essex take on lancashire. essex say cook's been receiving treatment for the injury for several weeks, but it isn't thought to be serious. the republic of ireland women's football team will meet with their governing body tonight, after threatening to go on strike. a group of players have spoken out about the poor treatment and lack of support they've received from the fai, and are fighting for compensation for loss of earnings whilst on international duty. our football reporter david ornstein has more. these issues have been

building for some years. the players have complained about a lack of pay to compensate the lack of earnings from their dayjob. also being forced to change in public toilets. last year the players approached their union to help resolve this issue and yesterday morning they gathered in dublin for a press conference to talk publicly about their grievances. the governing body the fai do not want to deal with the union, that is the issue, they want to deal with the players directly, but the players want their union to mediate and that is why we have reached this point of a possible strike that could threaten that match against slovakia on monday. the players will wait to see how this 6pm meeting goes before deciding whether they want to resume training. final practice has been suspended in augusta ahead of the masters which,

weather—permitting, will get underway tomorrow, because of severe thunderstorms on the way. rory mcilroy has already put in the hours though. the world number two has played more than 99 practice holes, as he aims for his first masters win, which would complete an historic grand slam of major titles. i'm ready. i've played enough golf around here this year. you know, even driving down magnolia lane this morning for the first time this week, it didn't feel... it felt like i've never been away, it didn't feel that special because i've done it so much. it's been nice. i've said in a couple of pieces, the more you can make augusta national feel like your home golf course, the better. you're just comfortable in your surroundings.

we will be back in an hour. breaking news from the united states, donald trump's adviser has been refused from his national security council role. you may recall he is trump's top strategist who led the presidential campaign but he has proved deeply unpopular. ratings this week showing that many people had not heard of him with 11% of those who have, only 11% having a favourable opinion, 45% having an unfavourable one. steve bannon eight casualties of the early changes in the trump administration. the national security council is essentially the principal forum used by the president for consideration of national security and foreign policy matters and he was sitting on that, steve bannon, but he has been relieved of that role. we will get

more on that as it comes in. more now on the un security council holding an emergency session to discuss the suspected gas attack on a rebel—held town in syria. the uk's ambassador to the un said it bore "all the hallmarks" of an attack by president assad's regime, describing any use of chemicals as a war crime. he also called on russia to change its approach to un negotiations and underlined britain's resolve to pursue a peaceful solution. russia falls back on its own ways, defending the indefensible. we will not be deterred. the united kingdom with our allies will continue to seek justice for the victims with our allies will continue to seekjustice for the victims of chemical weapons attacks in syria and elsewhere. the french ambassador to the un also called on nations to act together, warning that the eyes of the world were on them. translation: the time has come for us translation: the time has come for us to act collectively with all necessary firmness in the face of

these weapons of mass destruction. i would like to hope that we can join together and reiterate our rejection of the use of chemical weapons. the world is watching us. sorry about the poor sound quality. china's ambassador to the un made clear his country's position on the use of nuclear weapons. he accused the british ambassador of the sport, distorting the position. translation: the position of the uk does not hold water. the question that draws international consensus. . . that draws international consensus... stop accusing the council, to do so will not be in the interests of syrian people. we hope the uk government will refrain from

such practice in future. the russian ambassador said that much interest in syria was ideological and talked of an anti—damascus agenda. ideological and talked of an anti-damascus agenda. interest in these events is clearly an ideological... it is closely interwoven with the anti—damascus campaign which does not seem to... has not yet reached a place deserves on the landfill of history. when the political process in geneva and as sta n political process in geneva and as stan as that static shape and gains speed then strangely all sorts of incidents start to occur. the last example is a tragedy. according to our information the syrian

opposition has requested that the syrian government... the syrian government has requested to send a mission to investigate these events and provide assistance. there's no need to repeat that the russian federation has always had a clear and unequivocal position. the view from russia. earlier i spoke to dr beyza unal, research fellow with the international security department at chatham house, who told me what she thinks happened. there is speculation whether this nerve agent or a different type of chemical attack happened. i think what we have seen was the use of sarin ora similartype what we have seen was the use of sarin or a similar type of nerve agent which was dropped from a jet plane, possibly from the syrian

government or affiliates of the government. you would query this account that we are getting from the syrian regime that this was an accidental bombing of a militant arms depot essentially where that kind of agent was being stored? yeah. i read the news about that and i think it is the russian claim as well. there are some technical problems of that was the case. if the toxic materials were actually there in the missile facility then they should be in the form of organic phosphate. if it was bombed the dispersal of that material would not cause the damage we have seen today. technically it would not be possible. also sarin vaporises under heat conditions so that kind of creates the problem as well. i find that the second narrative is a bit dubious. if we accept as many people

seem dubious. if we accept as many people seem to be suggesting that this is the syrian government and not rebels, what are they trying to gain from a move like this would clearly causes huge international condemnation of civilian casualties? we need to see here i think both sides suggest that it was a jet plane that dropped either a conventional weapon or chemical weapons so conventional weapon or chemical weapons so it still is the syrian military government that use this, did this attack. i do not think there is any way that the rebels could do it because the delivery system is the jet plane which is affiliated to the government itself. we need to clarify that part. the problem that icn here is that

because of this hole polarisation between syria and the united states right now we cannot come up with any kind of conclusion and it has been yea rs kind of conclusion and it has been years that chemical weapons attacks have been going on in syria and we do not have any solutions. the whole issue has been coming to the fore since 2013. these chemical attacks. do you think they are likely to ramp 7 do you think they are likely to ramp re do you think they are likely to ramp up? are we do you think they are likely to ramp ing do you think they are likely to ramp up? are we going to see them go down? we hope so. the syrian government had an agreement with the united nations and there was a joint tea m united nations and there was a joint team to united nations and there was a joint tea m to ta ke united nations and there was a joint team to take out all the materials outside of syria. it is clear that there are still materials in syria. we need to clarify, we need to make sure that these materials are going to be taken out and the syrian government is actually responsible to do that under international law. how realistic and expectation do you

think that is given that we have the un security council meeting in new york this afternoon? we know that any sort of statement from them is likely to be problematic because russia will not agree. the idea we can send monitors in to check on the syrian government becomes very difficult. if the politicalworld by the united nations security council is there i cannot see any issue that cannot be handled. we handle different issues before. the orang dealfor instance different issues before. the orang deal for instance was between russia and the united states and countries coming together on the future on how to handle the iran issue. similarly with syria, we have to differentiate national interests from the interests of the whole population and humanity and the future of cellulite on this. -- syria.

the un security council is hosting a debate on the chemical attack in syria. jeremy corbyn has said labour's national executive committee will review ken livingstone's comments in the wake of his suspension from the party. the duke and duchess of cambridge have attended a special service at westminster abbey for the victims of the westminster terror attack. it's been a healthy day's trading day here in london — with the ftse pretty much ahead of the game in terms of the rest of europe.

gains have been boosted by mining and oil stocks. a bit of uncertainty elsewhere — especially ahead of that meeting between donald trump and his chinese counterpart — and the release of the minutes from the last federal reserve meeting. here's what's been attracting a lot of attention. new car sales hit a record high in march, sparked in part by buyers rushing to get in ahead of a tax change. we've also seen sterling jump against the dollar. and there's been evidence that the services sectors is growing faster than expected. starting with the service sector figures, what is behind that boost in the sector? it is interesting that the sector has managed to hold onto its resilient gains we saw during the fourth quarter and it suggests the economy is performing relatively well in the first quarter of this year, belying concerns of an aggressive slowdown. it is the case that the consumer remains relatively

resilient. we saw the savings ratio atan resilient. we saw the savings ratio at an all—time low. the consumer sector is feeling buoyant and that is providing impetus for the services sector overall and providing a tale went for gdp in the first quarter. one cautionary note because the figures show that the companies were raising their prices and that could bear bad news for inflation. indeed. that is going to be the story that is going to continue to play out through 2017, the rising prices. inflation is 2.3% and we are going to bridge towards the percent probably by the summer. not going to see earnings rising commensurate with that we see negative earnings growth but for now consumers are reflecting and basking in the previous gains on incomes over the last couple of years and

are not yet reacting to the prospect of negative earnings growth. we can go back to new york to the meeting of the un security council and hear from the syrian representative. translation: these are used as human shields by the arm terrorist groups. syria reaffirms that the syrian army does not have any form or type of chemical weapons. we have never used them and we will never use them. my government has a principled and firm position that rejects the crime of use of chemical weapons and any form of weapons of mass destruction by any party, regardless of where, when and what circumstance and justification. this is a crime

against humanity and unethical, unjustifiable, and these are firm principles. we use them to join the op cw. we honoured all of our obligations under the convention because we believe that the middle east should be a wmd free zone. we have shown several responsibility and transparency in the framework of the agreement between my country, the agreement between my country, the op cw and others. the accusations were levelled against my country syria and its allies against terror. this was the case since day one as the media have reported information that is provided by

terrorist groups that are designated by the council. this affirms that certain parties and said this council with turkey and other countries will continue their dangerous practices that blackmail my government and its allies and seeks to challenge the reputation in our war seeks to challenge the reputation in ourwaragainst seeks to challenge the reputation in our war against terror. easy to obstruct the talks in geneva and the end prospect of a political solution the crisis, even at the expense of children and women who are innocent victims of the terrorism in syria and the world today. this includes the role of the government of some countries that are forming a choir to accuse syria without justification so they will send a dossier of chemical weapons of syria to square one to serve clear

political objectives. this seeks to spot the openness to syria which has started to take shape recently. my country in the geneva talks expressed on the 31st of march 2017 that syria is concerned about reports that speak of the possession of armed terrorist groups in areas of armed terrorist groups in areas of damascus and elsewhere of chemical toxic material so that they would be used as weapons against civilians. he warned against fabrication of evidence and any accusation against my country as was the kids before. i would like to remind this council but my government has spent more than 90 letters, the most recent of which was a few days ago, to the council and the 15 committee and the higher representative and the opwc, all of

these letters included documented information on the possession of armed terrorist groups, namely isil, of toxic chemicals that they have possessed through the turkish territory. in particular. we condemn and we find it very strange that there is... that this coincides with there is... that this coincides with the holding of international meetings on syria. or when there are talks between the syrian parties in geneva, it coincides with these incidents against civilians. this is aligned with the continued cheap political exploitation of some member states of the council as the yea rs member states of the council as the years fabricated reports by the media linked to the intelligence bodies of some countries and they do

not use reason or logic or wait to establish the facts. they do not think even four minutes about two is the real beneficiary of using toxic chemicals against innocent civilians. the answer is clear. the main beneficiary is the syrian regime is that have targeted syria for more than six years. they tried to salvage and rescue the armed groups and their alliance of armed groups and their alliance of armed groups so groups and their alliance of armed groups so that they would undermine the political process in geneva. the scenario against my country syria in the council is the only explanation of these statements by the president of these statements by the president of these statements by the president of the council in the month of march as he declared that he will stand against any draft resolution tabled by the russian federation or china or no opening the dossier of the position of armed terrorists groups

of chemical weapons in syria and iraq. it is paradoxical... a robust response from the syrian representative to the un saying that they would lay the blame for those chemical attacks firmly at the door of terrorist groups and seeing that they have laid various pieces of evidence before the security council about the possession by terrorist groups of toxic chemicals. more to come at 5pm. pretty good news for most of the country, very quiet settled weather on the way. some cloud spilling down from the north—west but still quite tenuous across england and wales. overnight, is being tried just about everywhere. increase the amounts of cloud over southern and eastern parts of the uk. a few breaks.

especially eastern scotland and north—east england. typical temperature seven or 8 degrees. rain cropping up across the western hills of scotla nd cropping up across the western hills of scotland because the wind is coming in strongerfrom of scotland because the wind is coming in stronger from the atlantic bringing moisture but some sunshine in the east of scotland. other parts of the uk may have been cloud but a lot of it, a few breaks. if we get some sunshine 15 as possible but neither 11 or 12, about average. quiet weatherfor neither 11 or 12, about average. quiet weather for the next few days. a little sunshine. over the weekend will be turning warmer. on sunday especially for england and wales. today at five, the un security council meets in emergency session,

following the deadly chemical attack in syria. dozens are still being treated, including many children. more than 70 people died when the attack if they rebel held town. at an international meeting on syria in brussels the foreign secretary, boris johnson, said syrian forces may have knowingly launched a chemical attack. this bears all the hall marks of the assad regime and the use of chemical weapons is a war crime. we'll have the latest from the un in new york and get the thoughts of a former us assistant secretary of state. the other main stories on bbc news at five: at westminster abbey, a service of hope and remembrance following the terror attack of two weeks ago, as the widow of one victim speaks for the first time.