the labour leaderjeremy corbyn promises to stand up for ordinary working people, as his election campaign gets underway. it was to be a fight between the "establishment and the people" he said — and said the result is not a foregone conclusion. but of course they do not want us to win, because when we win, it is the people not the powerful who win. former ukip mp douglas carswell says he won't stand for re—election in clacton and will back the tories. we'll bring you all the latest as campaigning gets underway. also this lunchtime. theresa may holds brexit talks with the european parliament president — he says his priority is the status of eu citizens here. a major breakthrough in the treatment of dementia — a drug for depression could help protect the brain from degeneration. almost £500,000 is raised for a 17—year—old racing driver, who's had both legs amputated after a high speed crash. and how cycling to work can

halve your risk of getting cancer and heart disease. and coming up in the sport on bbc news. left out of the lions squad but still leading his country. dylan hartley will captain the england party for their tour of argentina this summer. good afternoon and welcome to the bbc news at one. the labour leaderjeremy corbyn has said he will stand up for ordinary working people, as he attacked big business and the elite in his first major speech of the general election campaign. casting thejune 8th vote as a fight between the "establishment and the people," mr corbyn said a "cosy cartel" ran a "rigged system," and that wealth should be shared. recent opinion polls have put labour between 15 and 20 points

behind the conservatives, but mr corbyn dismissed suggestions the election result was a foregone conclusion. here's our political correspondent chris mason. the next prime minister of the uk, jeremy corbyn. the next prime minister of the uk, jeremy corbyn. do you believe it? do they believe it? does he believe it? 0pinion polls suggest it's highly unlikelyjeremy 0pinion polls suggest it's highly unlikely jeremy corbyn will 0pinion polls suggest it's highly unlikelyjeremy corbyn will be heading for downing street but mr corbyn is trying to change people's minds. much of the media and the establishment are saying this election is a foregone conclusion. they think there are rules in politics which, if you don't follow by doffing your cap to the powerful people, accepting that things can't really change, then you can't win. but of course they don't want us to win, because when we win, it is the

people, not the powerful, who win. jeremy corbyn was full of vim, zip and energy. the conservatives, he said, are morally bankrupt, the system is rigged and he would prove people wrong. anyone who stands up to create a better, fairer, more decent society gets vilified. 0ur party gets vilified. but i'll tell you, we are bigger, stronger and more determined than we've ever been. his challenge is convincing enough people outside this room. there is a very clear choice and it isa there is a very clear choice and it is a clear choice between strong and sta ble is a clear choice between strong and stable government with strong leadership under theresa may and the conservatives or a coalition of chaos withjeremy conservatives or a coalition of chaos with jeremy corbyn pepped up by the scottish national party and the liberal democrats. having voted itself out of existence, parliament here will soon dissolve and they will head from this post code to

your postcode. if you want to have a say, you have a month to register to vote. for now at least, deciding who walks through this door injune is in your hands. let'sjoin norman let's join norman smith who let'sjoin norman smith who is let's join norman smith who is also in westminster. jeremy corbyn‘s antiestablishment message. how far will that resonate with people who are not his natural supporters?” was in the hall and this speech was rapturously received. was in the hall and this speech was ra pturously received. it was in the hall and this speech was rapturously received. it was classic corbyn, castigating the wealthy, the media, the establishment, the city. it's the sort of speeches made that under the demonstrations, processed marchers, rallies throughout his career but the danger is that it was a comfort zone speech, a feel—good speech for the true believers. the risk, that alberti middle england they might have more mundane

concerns about their mortgages, their children's schools, they may not be bothered about ripping up the rules and tearing down the elite. mr corbyn‘s team believe people are changing, that there is a sense of unhappiness with politics. people wa nt unhappiness with politics. people want things done differently and they point to the brexit boat, they point to donald trump, to the french elections as evidence of this mood, this desire for change which they believe jeremy corbyn this desire for change which they believejeremy corbyn can write to power on and they take the view that there's no point trying to package jeremy corbyn as some sort of conventional sound bite politician. this was corbyn uncut, the authentic jeremy corbyn and they hope voters will respond that. what did mr corbyn have to say about brexit? you have to say, the b word very rarely crosses his lips and it hardly did so crosses his lips and it hardly did so today. the reason for that,

frankly, it is labour is something ofa frankly, it is labour is something of a political punch bag when it comes to brexit. pummelled by brexiteers for not believing forcefully enough in brexit and punished by remainders for not fighting hard enough against brexit. at the same time, today, theresa may trying to keep the focus on brexit. she was meeting the president of the european parliament, indicating that the brexit process is still carrying on throughout this campaign and i think we could be facing one of the most divisive general elections in recent history, with theresa may taking on those she believes are frustrating the brexit process and jeremy corbyn determined to take on, as he sees it, the elite, the establishment. norman, good to talk to you, as always. douglas carswell, the mp for clacton who, until recently, was ukip's only mp, has said he will not be seeking

re—election in june. mr carswell, who sits as an independent, said he would be backing the conservative candidate. andrew sinclair is bbc east's political edtior and is in norwich. andrew, why isn't mr carswell standing and how has this gone down? no real surprise at today's announcement. douglas ca rswell regularly making political headlines. this was the tory mp who dramatically defected to ukip and insisted on fighting a by—election which he went on to win. he has regularly been in the news, having spats with ukip's former leader, nigel farage. last month he said he would sit in parliament as an independent because he thought he could'sjob was done. independent because he thought he could's job was done. today, independent because he thought he could'sjob was done. today, he has said he will not contest that election as an independent and has said he will be supporting the conservatives. in a statement he says, i have done everything i can to ensure we get the referendum and we leave the european union. it is

sometimes said that all political careers end in failure, it doesn't feel like that to me today. job done. i'm delighted. andrew, thank you. scotland's first minister, nicola sturgeon, has said labour is ‘unelectable' under jeremy corbyn‘s leadership. speaking during first minister's questions, she said voting snp was the only way to protect scotland from the conservatives. because of the unelectability of labour, scotland faces the prospect of an unfettered, out—of—control tory government, and we know the damage that can do to scotland. to our budget, to the vulnerable, to pensions, to our economy. so that's the choice for scotland. vote snp to make sure that scotland's voice is heard, and that scotland has protection against the tories. 0ur scotland correspondent lorna gordon is in edinburgh. lorna,it lorna, it was a lively session of

first minister ‘s question. did you feel that each party was effectively rehearsing their arguments for the election campaign ahead? yes, rehearsing their arguments that we will hear again and again i think over the next seven weeks. there's a protest outside parliament this afternoon over reforms to child tax credits. that was one of the main issues at the start of first minister's questions to date. they we re minister's questions to date. they were noisy exchanges over that issue but what you did really get was a sense of the election issues ahead. nicola sturgeon saying again and again that it was her impression and opinion that only the snp can protect scotland from what she described as an increasingly hardline conservative government. the conservatives are the main opposition here at holyrood. their leader, ruth davidson, but her part saying that nicola sturgeon‘s best intervention in this election has been to put mr corbyn in pole position to become prime minister.

that of course dipping a nod towards the comments yesterday from nicola sturgeon that she would be prepared to support an alliance. nicola sturgeon‘s responds today was that the polls suggest there was no chance of jeremy corbyn the polls suggest there was no chance ofjeremy corbyn getting into number ten. kezia dugdale, the labour leader, said that it within the snp's interests for the conservatives to stay where they are. nicola sturgeon has been due to set out how her proposals, have plans to hold a second independence referendum over the coming weeks, that triggered by brexit, it is not sure how that will continue now a snap election has been called. you can keep up to date with all of that

on the bbc news page. theresa may has invited the president of the european commission jean—claude juncker, and his chief brexit negotiator michel barnier, to a meeting in london next week. it follows a meeting earlier today with the president of the european parliament, who made clear his priority was the fate of eu citizens in the uk. 0ur diplomatic editorjames landale has been following the visit. james. rita, antonio gianni might not be a household name in britain but he matters because his parliament matters. in brussels, it will have a beater, a vote over any deal between the uk and the eu. after meeting the prime minister this morning, he said something very interesting. since the prime minister colby election, most senior european figures have kept their heads down. the president however said he welcomed the election

because of the stability that he thought it would bring to the brexit negotiations. this is what he said to me. positive impact. i think for the european union, it is better to have stability in the united kingdom than to have the same interlocutor without internal problems. for us, it is much better to have these negotiations with have this with the new government than a government before an election campaign. for us, it is much better. the other point that the european parliament president made was that in his eyes, the importance of securing an early deal for european residents living in the uk as part ofa residents living in the uk as part of a brexit deal. he said that he and the prime minister agreed that there was a need for this to be done as soon as possible and he talked of as soon as possible and he talked of a framework deal in perhaps a matter of months. i have to say that having spoken to officials in the uk and in

brussels that would be optimistic because of the sheer scale of technical problems of reaching a deal on this. which migrants are we talking about, what rights are we talking about, what rights are we talking about? rights to live, to work, what benefits? the whole issue of migrant —— citizen rights is very obligated. i think it will be tough to getan obligated. i think it will be tough to get an early deal on this. james, many thanks. the american billionaire bill gates, has used a speech in london to warn theresa may that reducing the government's commitment to foreign aid would cost lives. the prime minister has refused to say whether she will retain a pledge made by david cameron to spend at least 0.7% of national income on overseas development. so, what is the money spent on and how do we compare to other countries? loading up. the uk is one of a handful of countries that meet the long—standing international target of spending 0.7% of gross national

income on overseas aid. that tra nslates income on overseas aid. that translates to more than £12 billion a yearand translates to more than £12 billion a year and there are those that argue that it is too much. 0.7% figure was written into law in 2015. theresa may has refused to say whether she intends to keep it. prominent campaigners insist that she should. you pick the things that you are going to spend less money on if you take it away. less on girls education, less on tools of contraception that empower women, less malaria bed nets where we have brought children's deaths from 1 million a year to half a million a year. so how does our aid budget of no .7% compared to that around the world ? no .7% compared to that around the world? well, scandinavia is at the top of the list. sweden spent 0.37% —— no .97% but other countries are

significantly below us. us spent 0.18% and rogerjust 0.08%. currently our money is focused where it is really needed, like in the horn of africa, but there is now pressure in westminster for the money to be put into a larger budget which would also cover defence, giving them more flexibility on where the money is spent. there is a pressure on our spending as part of our diplomatic effort, our soft power and our diplomatic defence, because if we help poorer countries to prosper, we can trade with them. there have been campaigns against wasteful spending abroad at the time of cuts at home. plans to spend billions to continue funding this group, known as ethiopia's spice girls, were abandoned earlier this year. there is also backing for

foreign aid, with campaigners seeing it as foreign aid, with campaigners seeing itasa foreign aid, with campaigners seeing it as a lifeline, in which global britain should wish to continue to lead. scientists have discovered drugs which may be able to halt the progress of a wide range of degenerative brain diseases, including alzeimer‘s and parkinson's. one of them is already safely given to people with depression. the research has been described as potentially a major step forward. 0ur health correspondent jane dreaper reports. these pills could hold promise for fighting some of the illnesses we fear the most. scientists now think this drug and another one could reduce the brain shrinkage caused by alzheimer's and other diseases. an effective treatment would give hope to joy watson. i was diagnosed officially at the age of 55. it was actually my birthday. before then i was experiencing symptoms of being clu msy was experiencing symptoms of being clumsy and it was all put down to depression and stress. but it was

quite a relief when i got the diagnosis. i tried to put on a brave face for the other people i have contact with and my family. it's almost like living a double life to be honest. one of the drugs is already licensed and used to treat depression. it will take time and trials in many people, before we know whether this can definitely also help prevent the damage to the brain caused by dementia and similar illnesses. but scientists are excited. we aren't going to cure these disorders but if we stop them in their tracks, and we change the way they progress, we will radically change the course and the natural history of diseases like alzheimer's disease and other dementias. because people will still be able to hold onto a meaningful quality of life and stay out of institutional care. so far, the research has focused on brain cells in mice, but it is hoped

trials in humans will begin soon, because one of the medicines is already on prescription. we can move to testing bees in people much faster than we would for other drug discovery processes. although this isn't an overnight process, it maybe a few years rather than decades before these can be helping people. but some previous drug trials into these brain or nurses have ended in disappointment. a lot of hope will be riding on the latest work. jane draper, bbc news. our top story this lunchtime. labour leaderjeremy corbyn promises the election will be a fight between the election will be a fight between the establishment and the people, and that a conservative victory is not a foregone conclusion. still to come, one of the most high—profile news p rese nte rs come, one of the most high—profile news presenters in america loses his job after being accused of sexual

harassment. coming up in sport at half—past, andy murray's struggles on serve continue as he attempts to reach the quarter finals of the monte carlo masters, his first tournament since an elbow injury, against spain's albert ramos—vinolas. everyone knows that using two wheels rather than four is good for you — but now researchers believe cycling to work could actually halve the risk of developing heart disease and cancer. scientists at the university of glasgow, who analysed data from more than 250,000 people, said walking reduced the risk of the same conditions by a quarterjon kay reports. is this the best way to live for longer? laura certainly hopes so. she cycles five miles to work in bristol every morning, and then five miles back home again. how do you feel cycling to work helps you? it wakes me up in the morning, gets me geared up for the day, puts me in a good mood. it's a good way to manage stress and things as well, because when we live in the city, busy lifestyles, getting on your bike in the morning is great.

it gets rid of all that stress and adrenaline that can build up. some people say it's very stressful riding a bike, and that's one of the reasons they don't do it. i think, if i had to cycle on main roads for the whole journey, i would find it quite stressful. luckily, i can use the cycle track. scientists from the university of glasgow looked at the health of a quarter of a million commuters over five years to examine the benefits of cycling. they found that those using pedal power had... that's compared with people who are driving or using public transport. we need to make it easier for people to cycle, so we need to increase cycle lanes, we need to have cycle and city hire schemes, subsidised bike schemes, have people have showers at work, so they don't feel sweaty when they get to work. there's a whole host of things just to make it easier for the average person to cycle. if we can do that, we'll get more people on their bikes, and we'll improve public health, just like places like amsterdam and copenhagen have done.

cycling groups say if we follow the lead of those european cities, we could save money on health care, because fewer of us would become seriously ill. although, of course, cycling can also lead to more accidents and injuries. researchers say walking to work also has some benefits, but not as many. they say for commuters like laura, cycling is especially good, because it fits into the daily routine. jon kay, bbc news, bristol. more than £a00,000 has been raised to help a 17—year—old racing driver, who had his lower legs amputated after being involved in a crash on sunday. billy monger ran into the back of another car which appeared to have stopped on the track during the race at donington park in leicestershire. 0ur sports correspondent joe wilson reports. 17 years old and life changed forever. billy monger, one of

britain's most talented racing drivers, was competing at donington park when he collided with a stationary car at 120 miles an hour. airlifted to hospital at the queen's medical centre in nottingham, his lower legs were removed in surgery. billy monger‘s talent was well known, even when he was at primary school. at age nine he was featured on blue peter. how fast where you going? 55 mph. his racing team is raising money to help fund his recovery. the total was nearing half a million short time ago, with lewis hamilton and jenson button amongst supporters. billy has been communicating with his team principal in hospital. he is aware of what's happened. he's obviously a very positive lad. the first thing he started to do was to work out how to use a clutch with his hand. motor racing without legs is possible. this driver was injured while

serving in afghanistan and has offered to help billy monger. i've beena offered to help billy monger. i've been a young man who lost his legs, obviously in different circumstances. i just think about billy, i've been in that position, you try and be strong in front of everybody. in your head, you'll still trying to make sense. formula for is a route to formula 1. drivers we re for is a route to formula 1. drivers were practising today, motor racing may be safer, it doesn't mean it's risk—free. what happened to billy monger is a reminder of what can happen to anyone. j wilson, bbc news. in the last few minutes that total has gone to over half £1 million. debenhams is to review the future of ten of its department stores, as more people take to the internet for their shopping. the company's already closing ten of its warehouses and one regional distribution centre, and says these latest plans are a "strategy for growth". more than 200 jobs are at risk. simon gompertz is here.

so, what is this strategy? they are closing stores and warehouses but say it's a strategy for growth. they face the department store ‘s dilemma. what do you do when you have all these expensive town centre outlets. they have 165 across the uk and people are shopping more on the internet. and especially on their smartphones. their strategy is to concentrate on the smartphone, that's where sales have been growing. it's bad news for the stores but around one third of the stores but around one third of the people who use that come into the people who use that come into the shop to pick up what they've bought. they can also use the app to offer them experiences in the shop. beauty treatments, fashion events, food and drink. they are trying to offer those things people want to photograph with their smartphones and share on social media. that's the direction if they are going. they've identified these ten stores which will start losing money and

may have to be closed. a big debenhams store probably employs around 1000 people so that is a major worry forjobs. in the short term more than 200 people who work in the distribution centre in northampton and more warehouses across the country that debenhams won't be using any more. the us and south korea are taking part in a joint military exercise involving aircraft carriers and fighter jets, an action which pyongyang has called "a provocation". washington says the 11—day exercises, which take place every year, were planned months ago, but tensions are currently especially high on the korean peninsula. steve evans reports from a us airforce base in south korea. 80 aircraft fly from this base in south korea, and bases injapan. practising air—to—air combat, and bombing targets on the ground. us planes and south korean planes integrating as one strikeforce is the idea. i don't think it's any different than anywhere else in the world. the training that we do every day is designed to prepare us for any

kind of threat that we might encounter, and so if the time were to come, i feel like anyone of us, including myself, are prepared to execute the mission. i am excited to get to work with korean pilots. this is personally my first time getting to work with pilots from another country, and so it has been very enlightening to me to see that they have very similar aircraft, and yet sometimes very different tactics. i think it's a fantastic learning experience. they don't say it's about north korea, but it's the only country on anyone's mind. this exercise is called "max thunder". it involves about 80 aircraft, about 1000 american personnel, and about 500 south korean. there are also bases in japan involved. it happens every single year, but this year is different. the atmosphere is heightened, because president trump says he's different from past presidents. he'll stop kim jong—un having nuclear weapons,

by force if necessary. the carl vinson aircraft carrier is now heading to korea. according to us military, it was set to be ten days ago, but headed in a different direction. with the current build—up, north korea said there was a risk of nuclear war. tough words from both sides, but nobody knows what they add up to. just words, or much, much worse? stephen evans, bbc news, south korea. with three days to go to the first round of france's presidential election, the main candidates have been holding some of their last major rallies, and tonight the 11 candidates will be interviewed for 15 minutes each by french television. lucy williamson is in paris for us. this is a race that seems to have got closer by the week? yes. most of the recent predictions

put the top four candidates just a few points apart. those four candidates span a remarkable range of political views. you've got the far left candidate, the far right candidate, the liberal new, emmanuel macron running his first ever election campaign. they are all seen as political outsiders and the only representative from france's traditional parties of government is the conservative francois fillon. they are divided on any issue you ca re they are divided on any issue you care to mention. europe, austerity, immigration. they are fiercely divided. tonight they will line up with the rest of the candidates and be interviewed one by one on national television. they will be held to account that those policies. analysts say more than a quarter of the vote in france is still undecided. many people are not sure if they are even going to vote at all. analysts say france is in

uncharted territory, the result is impossible to call. thank you. one of the most high profile figures in american tv news, bill 0'reilly, has lost his job after being accused of sexual harassment. his employer 21st century fox, which owns the cable channel fox news, has confirmed he won't be returning from a break. he's claimed the allegations against him are unfounded. colin paterson reports. we have a contest on bill 0'reilly.com, guess where bill is going. i have a full... except bill reilly will not be returning. he had been their biggest rfid more than two decades. five women have come forward with claims of sexual harassment and the relegation these have been settled out of court for £10 million. fire bill 0'reilly! earlier this week, a former colleague said he regularly made passes at her when no one was watching, and described her as hot chocolate. when major sponsor started to pull their adverts, his position weakened further.

and now, the parent company, 21st century fox, has confirmed that he's been fired. we are so happy that he is gone and he is no longer going to be able to spit all of his vile comments and all of the things that come out of his mouth. it's disparaging not only to women but also specifically to black women and black folks all over the world. lastjuly, the boss of fox news, roger ailes, resigned over allegations that he had sexually harassed female employees. now the acting ceo, rupert murdoch, has made an attempt to usher in a new era at the channel by issuing an internal memo also signed by his sons, saying that the staff are committed to fostering a work environment built on trust and respect. and this comes at a delicate time come with 21st—century fox trying to buy the remaining 61% of sky tv in the uk.