this is bbc news. i'm annita mcveigh. the headlines at 2pm. theresa may hits the campaign trail in wales — as she seeks to take territory off labour. labour sets out its approach to accept. we will immediately guarantee that all eu nationals living in the uk will see no change in their legal status as a result of rags that. from day one, a big commitment. the two remaining presidential candidates in france attend a ceremony to honour the policeman shot dead in paris last week. sir elton john cancels a series of concerts, after contracting a potentially deadly bacterial infection — while touring in south america. and in the next hour — president trump's daughter makes herfirst international trip — since being given

an official position in her father's administration. ivanka trump takes the stage alongside angela merkel — as an official adviser to the us — but there's criticism about the nature of her role in the white house. and hearts and minds — researchers say regular moderate exercise is the best way to keep your brain sharp, if you're over 50. good afternoon and welcome to bbc news. theresa may is targeting labour seats in wales following a shock poll that could see the conservatives take the majority of welsh votes for the first time in 150 years. the prime minister is speaking in south wales a little later on and our chief political

correspondent vicki young is there. the conservatives see rich pickings potentially in wales? yes. i think they do. they think there are no go areas for them. theresa may has gone to newport and visiting other places today. their confidence comes from the macro three vote. wales voted to leave. there is a sizeable uk thought here, about 15%. they are hoping that many of those people hearing theresa may's message delivering on macro three well switch their allegiance to her. what will be interesting today well to see if she broadens it out not to speakjust see if she broadens it out not to speak just about macro see if she broadens it out not to speakjust about macro street but also about more domestic product ——

policies. she will attack labour's track record here anywhere else. she will say what has happened here of the last few years has proven her point. she will say there is a chance that general requirement will be propped up by parties like macro to. she will say policies have failed under labour. car whenjones is convinced they can do it and that those traditional labour voters will stick to the party to some extent. we are in this bizarre situation where senior conservative figures i have been speaking to, are trying to downplay expectations that might happen here. there is only one poll, they certainly do think they can make games here in wales. that is the reason for this early election, to increased their majority. we

gather she will speak about trying to get rid of tribal politics. wales is an area where labour have traditionally seen as there strong old. as you mentioned, they voted in favour of macro three. the tories sense they could make gains there? yes. there are areas like the valleys where the do not think they can make that much headway. there are many n —— other areas. they have been gradually clawing their way back since the 2009 european elections. but i think macro three is key for them. she will say, turn your back on tribal politics, she will accuse labour of turning their back on people. she will see the have let public services under par. labour say you cannot compare the

two things, the nhs in england and wales. they will say there is an older population in wales and people have more complex health a post industrial country which has a complex issues. to reza may well wa nt to complex issues. to reza may well want to talk about attracting a different foot. attracting the working—class folk, talking about people's wave chances. once the ma nifesto people's wave chances. once the manifesto comes, she will notjust wa nt manifesto comes, she will notjust want it to be about macro three. there will be things about taxation which might appeal to a different audience. plaid cymru launched its general election campaign in bangor this morning. its leader leanne wood said her priority was to "protect the nation from reckless tory policies". the party currently holds 3 of the a0 westminster seats in wales. in her launch speech, leanne wood said the snap election had not taken her party by surprise. we're already in election mode. it is important now that wales has

strong voices in westminster to defend our people and our very nation from what the tories could end up doing. labour says it will guarantee the rights of eu nationals living in the uk after brexit, if it wins the general election. setting out the party's proposals for negotiating britain's departure from the european union, the shadow brexit secretary sir keir starmer said labour would also prioritise jobs. he said he accepted that free movement of workers couldn't continue after brexit — but suggested eu nationals could still come to the uk if they have a guaranteed job offer. our political correspondent, alex forsyth reports. on an issue so key, labour has struggled to make its message clear. today, it set out its vision for brexit and promised it was different to the prime minister's.

we do not accept that brexit has to mean whatever theresa may says it means. we do not accept that there has to be a reckless tory brexit. specifically, the party said a labour government would guarantee the rights of eu citizens living in the uk. it would legislate to keep things like employment rights and protections for consumers and the environment. and it would scrap the current negotiating strategy and instead focus on retaining the benefits of the single market and the customs union. the party said its focus would be on protecting jobs and the economy. immigration should not be the only red line or overaveraging priority. freedom of movement has to go. it will have to change. but we must have immigration that works for our communities and for our economy.

that means there has to be movement of people to come and work in this country. how that's managed will have to be resolved. the last thing we want is for our businesses to go bankrupt. labour accepts the current membership of the single market which comes with the condition of free movement of people must end but suggests there could be a reformed membership of that and the customs union and says the tories were wrong to rule out options so early in the negotiations. but the conservatives appear unconcerned saying their rivals' brexit message is still confused, chaotic and on trade, indistinct from theirs. we want to get access to the rest of the world's markets but maintain as much as possible, passably all, of the current markets we have. they are trying to rebrand our argument of the last nine months. theresa may continues to campaign in labour seats. later today in wales.

confident her message, a clear commitment to brexit and strong leadership, can win over brexiteers and labour voters. our assistant political editor norman smith is in westminster. theresa may in a labour heartland. no surprise that labour has had to get itself on the front foot today in terms of detailing its brexit policy. is that going to work? it is an almighty important question and i guess we will not know the answer for a few days yet. but labour out of it to bed this idea of brexit, or they will not get a hearing for at they will not get a hearing for at the other issues they want to get a hearing about, social care and auntie is dirty, unless they can reassure voters auntie is dirty, unless they can reassure voters on auntie is dirty, unless they can reassure voters on brexit. those issues will not get traction. we had some clarity to date but there are

still areas where their opponents are going to keep picking away at them, particularly overfreedom of movement. but to reza me isjust getting to her feet. movement. but to reza me isjust getting to herfeet. that's crossover. “— getting to herfeet. that's crossover. —— terriers ma. —— to reza me. thank you very much for that wonderful welcome. it is great to be here in wales with 44 days to go to the most important election in this country is based in my lifetime. an election in which, as you have just said, alan, every single vote will count. a really important election for the future of this country and i'm really pleased to be able to be here in wales and to seek directly to wales, how important wales is important to me because we'll is as important to me because we'll is as important to me because we'll is as important to our country. and every single fault, we want to get votes

and support here in wales because that will strengthen my hand in the brexit negotiations. and every single vote, for me and the local conservative candidate, will be a vote for a stronger wales, for a stronger united kingdom and as i say, will strengthen my hand in those important brexit negotiations. and a vote for any other party would bea and a vote for any other party would be a vote for a week and feeling jeremy corbyn, propped up by a coalition of chaos, which would risk our national future. so every vote for the conservatives, every vote for the conservatives, every vote for me, every full for a local conservative candidate, is a vote for strong and stable leadership in the national interest. and that is what this election is all about, about leadership, about stability, about leadership, about stability, about doing the right thing for

britain. and it is only by voting conservative that you get that strong and stable leadership. because that is what this conservative government has been providing. and if you just think back to when i took over as prime minister after the referendum, there we re minister after the referendum, there were predictions of immediate financial crashes, of economic danger, but because of her strong leadership, what we have seen is that consumer confidence has remained high, record numbers of jobs and record growth which has been above all expectations. when i took over as prime minister, people said the country was divided that it would never come back together again. what i see around the country isa again. what i see around the country is a real unity of purpose, of people urging us to get on with the job of brexit and make a success of it. and when i took over as prime

minister, what was needed was a clear vision and that strong leadership to take us forward into those brexit negotiations and that's what we've provided. and that's the security that you get from a strong and stable government and strong and sta ble and stable government and strong and stable leadership. indeed, it'sjust what leadership looks like. and the choice at this election is very clear. it's a choice between that strong and labour —— stable leadership under the conservatives or leadership under the conservatives ora leadership under the conservatives ora weak and leadership under the conservatives or a weak and unstable coalition of chaos led by jeremy or a weak and unstable coalition of chaos led byjeremy corbyn. and make no mistake about it, that is what is on offer. we have seen the other parties lining up to supportjeremy corbyn, we have seen at from nicola sturgeon and the scottish nationalists and we have seen from macro to. you have a real example

here in wales of macro to working with labour. what we see from other parties is that they want to undermine the task ahead, they have shown they want to do anything to disrupt the brexit negotiations, to stop as leading britain into the future. make no mistake, it could happen. remember the opinion polls we re wrong happen. remember the opinion polls were wrong and the 2015th happen. remember the opinion polls were wrong and the 20 15th general election? they were wrong in the referendum last year. and jeremy corbyn himself has said he was a 200 to one side of the labour leadership in 2015. look where that one went. so let's not be complacent. i am going to be out and about and i am going to be out and about and i am going to be complaining and working for every single vote because what this country needs is at that strong and stable government for the future that can take this country forward,

notjust making that can take this country forward, not just making sure that can take this country forward, notjust making sure that we make a success notjust making sure that we make a success of brexit, but taking is beyond brexit and into the future. that means getting the right deal for every single part of our united kingdom. first city, town and country, that every part of the united kingdom and you will only get that with that strong and stable government and with a strong and sta ble government and with a strong and stable negotiations. this is important because brexit isn'tjust a process. it is an opportunity. it's an important moment for us because it's an opportunity for us to change this country for the better. it's an opportunity to ensure that we really are a country that works for everyone, and not just the privileged few. of course, to do that we have to

have the right man to take us forward as a country and that is what we have weather flying for a stronger britain. and that plan is about getting the right deal abroad but it is also about getting a better deal for working people here in the united kingdom. as we look at getting that right deal abroad, what do we want? as we negotiate our way out of the united union —— european union, we want to make sure are bringing back control of our borders, law and money. but decisions made about britain down here in the uk. we want a deep and strong partnership with the european union, with our european allies for the future and we want to strike deals across the world, for trading, for exporting british goods and services. we want to lead the world. we want to make the united kingdom

the strongest and most secure country in europe. but, asi but, as i say, we want to ensure that we get the best deal and better gear for ordinary working people here in the uk, that is about ensuring that we continue to build a stronger economy. one that gives secure jobs and we see prosperity spread across the whole of the country. we want to ensure there is opportunity for all, that we are building enough affordable homes for everybody. that there are still places for every child and we want to ensure that the united kingdom is a more secure and united nation, and that means at acting against the extremists who want to divide us. it also means standing against the separatist s you want to break up

the sacred collection of nations. we can only deliver that with that strong and stable government and it is only the conservative party that has that plan for a truly ensuring that we can create a country which is for everyone and not just the privileged few. so we have, as a party, we have the plan and we will be taking that around the country. i will be out there around the country meeting voters and hearing their concerns, taking our message out of what can be done in this country for the future around the whole of the united kingdom. it's a positive message and we will be fighting a positive campaign. and we will be out there, working for every single vote. because as i say, this is an election in which every single vote counts. so it is important that we

get out there. that we show the plan that we have for building a stronger britain. it is only the conservatives who have that strong and stable leadership to form that strong and stable government. it is only the conservatives who have that plan for a stronger britain. but it is only you, the people, who can give us the mandate. so my message is very clear, on the 8th ofjune, fortress strong and stable leadership in the national interest. give me a mandate to lead britain. give me a mandate to lead britain. give me a mandate to speak for britain. give me a mandate to fight for britain and give me a mandate to deliver for britain. thank you. you will not be surprised

to hear, we have one or two members of the media who would like to add some questions. you have warned against complacency but you would not be here in rock—solid labour territory if you did not think you we re territory if you did not think you were on course to take significant grant from the labour party. last week you would not rule out the tory ban on increase taxes. this suggestions you might cut taxes for working people. which will it be? how far working people. which will it be? howfarare working people. which will it be? how far are you willing to go to grab seats in parts of the country that until now have been labour heartlands? first of all on the tax issue, there is going to be a choice at this election. a choice between a conservative party, always has been and will be a party that believes in lower taxes. if you look at what we

have done as a conservative government, 31 people have seen their income tax cut. and the choice is between that and a labour party whose natural instinct is always to put up taxes. —— 31,000 people. the former labour shadow chancellor has said their plans would lead to a doubling of national insurance, doubling of national insurance, doubling of national insurance, doubling of vat and doubling of council tax. that is the choice people have at the election. about the part of your question which is about the areas of the country we go into. as i said in my remarks, this is an election in which every single vote counts. because every single vote counts. because every single vote for me and the conservative candidates will be a vote that strengthens our hand in the negotiations for a brexit. when i am sitting around the table getting the best deal for the united kingdom.

sitting around the table getting the best dealforthe united kingdom. i will be out and about around the country in all sorts of areas, all parts of the country, taking this message, a vote for me and a local conservative candidate is a vote to strengthen our hand in the brexit negotiations. you say that give me a mandate and you are obviously appealing for one for yourself, but aren't you using dot—mac we have a slight technical problem there with our line to the eventin problem there with our line to the event in south wales where the prime minister has been making that speech. you were hearing her saying this is the most important election of our lifetime. she said again and again, every single vote will count. warning against complacency and warning that of the opposition do

well, the saying is there could be up well, the saying is there could be up coalition of chaos. i think we can go back. we will move into formal negotiations. if you are looking for those negotiations, what you need is a government which has a clear plan for those negotiations. that is what the conservative government has. it is what the conservative party has. what we have seen from labour is another nonsensicaljeremy seen from labour is another nonsensical jeremy corbyn plan seen from labour is another nonsensicaljeremy corbyn plan for the future in terms of brexit. and what we have seen in the coalition is parties themselves, i am not talking about the opinion polls, i am talking about parties actually being willing to prop up the labour government led by jeremy being willing to prop up the labour government led byjeremy corbyn. that would damage this country's future. it would risk uncertainty for the future. prime minister, you

have said social care is one of the biggest issues facing the country. you have said you want a long—term solution to this. will that long—term solution be in your ma nifesto long—term solution be in your manifesto or will you docket or kick it into the long grass like so many of your predecessors have? you will have to wait to see what is in the manifesto. i have been clear on the issue of social care. i understand theissues issue of social care. i understand the issues and pressures and social care. i have seen there has to be a long—term, medium—term and short—term response. there was the action we took in terms of some councils being able to increase their precepts. there was the action in the budget which was putting £2 billion extra into social care. in the medium term we need to make sure that this practice is spread around the country in relation to social care. there are some parts of the uk

where you will see the local authorities are working very well with local hospitals and local health trusts in relation to social care. in otherareas health trusts in relation to social care. in other areas where you see delayed discharges from hospitals putting pressure on the nhs and making life difficult for those involved in that. we need to spread best practice. but we are working on a long—term solution. that is what we need to see in this country. we need to make sure we have that long—term solution for a sustainable future. your government has committed to £10 billion to the nhs until 2020-21. this committed to £10 billion to the nhs until 2020—21. this government will ta ke until 2020—21. this government will take us beyond that date. jeremy hunt has said that pressure is on the nhs will require substantial increases in funding. are you prepared to provide those above inflation increases by the end of this parliament? yet again you are tempting me to talk about something

that will be in our manifesto. the important thing, i think if you look at the nhs, again it is an area where there is a clear choice for people between the conservative party in the labour party. conservatives in government have put that money into the nhs, the 10 billion extra that we promised would go into the nhs over this period up to 2020. in the budget, the chancellor provided extra funding for the nhs, for some of those sustainability programmes but also for working with a&e to improve the way those departments are working. that is the there could that we have got. if you look at the last financial year, we as a conservative government, put more extra money into the nhs than labour in the last general election would fit into the nhs. but i cannot stand here in wales and talk about labour and the nhs without saying that what —— if

you want to see what labour would do with the nhs, just look at the problems here in wales. in wales, the labour party and plied camry have both made a big deal about the need to remain in the single market. they have spoken about the possibility ofjobs being lost, they have spoken about companies moving from wales to other eu countries if we are out of the single market. bridgend ford is not too far away from us here. when you met goldman sachs last may, you made some comments to the workers there that would indicate that you agreed with these comments made by labour and macro to. what has changed your mind? i campaigned for remain and made no bones about that. i spoke about the balance decision but i

also said this guy would not come in if we voted this come out of the european union. we need to make sure we make a successor brags about take the opportunities for the future as they come. as a result of brexit. in terms of the single market i have been clear, i laid it out in my speech injanuary, been clear, i laid it out in my speech in january, it been clear, i laid it out in my speech injanuary, it was been clear, i laid it out in my speech in january, it was an been clear, i laid it out in my speech injanuary, it was an hour wait paper, it was in the article 50 paper, we want the best possible deerfur paper, we want the best possible deer fur trading with the european union and the remaining states of the european union. we want the best possible tariff arrangements, tariff free, frictionless borders, to ensure that trade continues. it is not about access to the single market, we are talking about trading with the single market. it is about getting the best possible deal for trading with that single market. that is what is important for businesses here and across the uk.

but we will only get that with a government that has the leadership and the plan and the determination to go out and negotiate that best possible deal for the whole of the united kingdom, and the only party that has that is the conservative party. thank you very much. so, theresa may, finishing up our question—and—answer session in bridgend, saying that the election, onjune bridgend, saying that the election, on june the years, bridgend, saying that the election, onjune the years, is the most important election in her lifetime. repeating the call that she wasn't being complacent, warning against complacency and appealing to voters to give her a mandate to lead, to speakfor to give her a mandate to lead, to speak for britain, to fight for britain and to deliver for britain. she said. also, attacking labour's latest announcements on their brexit

plans, to her account this was their seventh line. let's bring in vicky young who was listening to the prime minister. the prime minister talking again and again about every single vote will count and warning against complacency, but i suppose when you have a 20 percentage point lead in the opinion polls, that's quite a ha rd the opinion polls, that's quite a hard message to get across? what's interesting is she tackled that head—onment she talked about the opinion polls, didn't she? saying they were wrong last time the they were wrong during the referendum and nobody predicted that jeremy corbyn would become labour leader. so in that sense, we are in this extraordinary position where you've got senior conservative figures in wales trying to down play expectations about how well they're going to do here. the conservatives are quite confident that they can do better than they've done before here and it's not out of the blue, the

tories have been coming back in wales. they're going to maybe benefit from the fact there was a huge ukip vote here during the last election two years ago, about 14%, 1596, election two years ago, about 14%, 15%, they are confident that a lot of those voters will switch over to them. she said, i lost count how many times she talked about strong and stable leadership, attacking jeremy corbyn's leadership head—on. it will be a fundamental central pa rt it will be a fundamental central part of theircampaign it will be a fundamental central part of their campaign contrasting her strong, and steady leadership with him. she called him weak and failing. and also attacking labour's record here in wales where labour have been in charge and i think because of the fact there has been coalitions here in the past, plaid cymru, liberal democrats, helping labour in the past here, that allows her to say well, they are going to do the same thing. jeremy corbyn could get in. he could be supported by the other parties even though the liberal democrats have ruled that out, but broadening, notjust talking about brexit here, talking

about the economy and helping ordinary working families. when we get to the stage of seeing the tory ma nifesto, get to the stage of seeing the tory manifesto, that's when we might see more about what she will do to help people on lower incomes. thank you very much. that's vicki young there live in bridgend. the french presidential candidate, marine le pen, has temporarily stood down as leader of the far—right national front, to try to broaden her support, in the run up to the final round of voting on 7th may. she told french television that she needs to be above party politics. this morning ms le pen and her rival emmanuel macron attended a ceremony in honour of xavierjugele, the police officer shot dead on the champs elysees last week. hugh schofield reports from paris. they were just faces among many others because this was not a moment for campaigning. the level of violence which police and gendarme had to face kept getting worse, he said. in xavierjugele, france had lost one of the bravest of its sons, an everyday hero. this morning's ceremony for xavierjugele and this

small makeshift memorial on the champs—elysees on the spot where he died are a reminder of how terrorism and security are a central theme in these elections. marine le pen in particular is telling the country that with her tougher line on deportations, and sentencing, on immigration, that attacks like this would be much harder to carry out. she's the outsider in the race, so marine le pen is coming out fighting, accusing emmanuel macron of not having the guts to defend the french. i'm no longer president of the front national. i'm a candidate for the presidency. emmanuel macron is biding his time, but he knows that he can't leave his rival to make the running alone on so vital an issue as the terrorist threat. sir eltonjohn has cancelled

a series of shows in the us after falling ill with what has been described as a potentially deadly bacterial infection. the singer, who is 70, spent two nights in intensive care, after contracting the illness while on tour in chile earlier this month. his management team says he is now recovering at home. our entertainment correspondent lizo mzimba reports. the 70—year—old is one of music's hardest—working acts, touring all over the world, and still giving energetic performances at what for many would be retirement age. during the recent series of concerts in south america, he contracted what his medical team has called a potentially deadly bacterial infection, becoming ill on his way back to the uk. in a statement, sir elton's management said: sir elton himself added:

# it's a little bit funny #. the illness has meant that sir elton has had to cancel planned concerts in april and may in california and las vegas. he is expected to return to the concert stage injune in london. the founder of wikipedia is launching an online news service to help combat fake news. jimmy wales says that wikitribune will use both professional journalists and what he's described as "community contributors"

to produce fact—checked articles. the site will be free to use, but will accept donations from supporters. here's our media editor amol rajan. fake news has gone global. whether deliberate distortions dressed up as real news or clandestine political advertising that targets you on social media, voters in america, germany and france have been hit. the question now is — could this new form of campaigning online be coming to britain ahead of the general election? if political messages are broadcast during an election campaign, they are subject to regulation. but what about messages that are published online? i rang up the law commission. they said to try the electoral commission. i rang up the electoral commission. they said, "that certainly would not be us." i rang the advertising standards agency and ofcom too. they both said it falls outside of their remit. the question remains — who polices this stuff? wikitribune is a new site with a new model for the news... perhaps this website is one answer.

wikitribune will ask for monthly subscriptions from a community of users who help to verify and shape online news themselves. it was launched this morning by the founder of wikipedia, jimmy wales. he argues that we need a sharp press at all layers of society. the rise of hateful politics, i think, is a direct result of this lack of quality in terms of giving people facts. if big internet companies won't take responsibility for what appears on their platforms and regulation has not kept pace with technology, it may fall to us to police fake news ourselves. tensions have increased on the korean peninsula, as the north carried out a massive artillery exercise to mark the anniversary of the founding of its armed forces. in the south, a us submarine has docked, adding to the build up of forces there. envoys from south korea,

the us and japan are holding talks in tokyo. our correspondent wyre davies has the latest. an american submarine glides into the port. it has been called a routine visit. but as tensions rise in the korean peninsula the sub is being joined by a larger group of warships, led by the aircraft carrier. it is the latest in a series of developments that shows how seriously washington is taking north korea's expanding nuclear programme. this is donald trump's toughest foreign policy challenge by far. his predecessors strategic patience with pyongyang clearly over. mr trump is demanding tougher un action or else. the council must be prepared to impose additional and stronger

sanctions on north korean nuclear and ballistic missile programmes. this is a real threat to the world. whether we want to talk about it or not. in a rare move, he has summoned all 100 members of the senate for a special white house briefing on korea. the question is, what comes next? as it marks as the 85th anniversary of the founding of its army, the north korean regime has reacted with furious words, if not yet actions, to the us naval manoeuvres and a special security council meeting on the region. the foreign ministry's response was almost blood curdling. translation: now that the us has pulled out its sword to kill us, we will also pull out our grand sword of justice and fight will also pull out our grand sword ofjustice and fight until the end and we will kill the us imperialists with our strong and revolutionary power. our nuclear forces stand at the core. the rhetoric and the i willages are

alateraling, but while there are concerns north korea maybe planning for missile tests, observers in the south say no unusual developments have been detected. china, the north‘s only major ally has urged the us not to act without un approval and called on both sides to show restraint. trying to second—guess two very different, but two unpredictable leaders in kim jong—un and donald trump is not proving easy. mps are urging the government to do more to ensure that all new—build homes are suitable for people with disabilities. the commons women and equalities committee says more than 90% of homes in england are inaccessible to someone who has a disability — often because of stairs, narrow doorways or lack of a bathroom on the ground floor. our disability affairs correspondent nikki fox reports. this is my front door. carlene has never lived in a house that's fully accessible. and even after i've

negotiated this door, there's another one to get through. born with cerebral palsy, she is able to live independently with the right set—up. i'd love to cook my own meals and use my oven, but i can't. but some of the features and use my oven, but i can't. for her to look after herself. the biggest issue is my kitchen, that is completely inaccessible to me. and i have to rely on support, external support. and i've been on the accessible housing register for ten years. and as to this day, i've still not seen a fully accessible property. the report states that only 7% of all homes in england have a basic level of accessibility. but it doesn'tjust look at housing. it looks at other challenges disabled people face, and calls for an investigation into how the equality act is being used from the early stages of any development. when it comes to planning our offices, our homes and our built environment, disability still seems to be an add—on — not critical and not part of the planning mechanisms. the goverment‘s current policy

states that it is up to councils to decide how many homes should be built with higher standards of accessibility. but with an estimated 300,000 disabled people in unsuitable homes, the committee is calling for better legislation on a national level. taking moderate exercise several times a week is the best way for people over the age of 50 to keep their brain in good working order. that's according to a new report which says a combination of aerobic activity such as swimming, cycling orjogging with muscle strengthening exercise is most effective. jon kay has been finding out more. back—step. .. tuesday lunchtime, and it's the over—50s dance class at henbury community centre. but it's not just their feet that are being exercised. researchers say their mental powers are also being stretched,

by getting more blood pumping to the brain. and these dancers agree. i used to do rock'n'roll and then i stopped, and i felt really sluggish. but now this sort of brings it back. so, yeah, i feel great. i think it's wonderful. it keeps you young! laughter. does it keep you sharp, do you think? oh, i am very sharp. i'm very good at quizzes, i'll tell you! we've known for a long time that exercise is good for both our physical and mental health as we get older. but this research pulls together 39 international reports and says aerobic activity improves our ability to think, learn, plan and remember. physical exercise can really help your brain function, your learning memory function. and that's really a very important motivator for people. because everybody cares about how well they age from the point of view of their mental functions.

the research found thatjust half—an—hour of moderate exercise every week was beneficial. but that the more exercise you have beyond was even better. of course, physical exercise isn't the only way to keep our minds active. and mental health charities say other factors, such as what we eat and drink, and keeping our brains stimulated, are all equally important. in a moment a summary of the business news this hour but first the headlines on bbc news: theresa may appeals to voters in wales saying only she can offer "strong and stable leadership in the national interest". labour sets out its approach to brexit if it wins the general election, pledging the rights of eu citizens already in the uk will be protected. and the two remaining presidential candidates in france attend a ceremony to honour the policeman shot dead in paris last week.

in the business news: the amount of money borrowed by the government is at its lowest level since the financial crisis. that's according to figures just published by the office for national statistics. for the 2016—2017 financial year as a whole, borrowing decreased by £20 billion. whitbread, the owner of costa coffee and premier inn hotels, reported profits up over 6%. the boss of the company reckons there is room for more hotel rooms in the uk, but 20% of their staff are from the eu. she has called for an open and flexible labour source with reference to concerns around brexit. carpetright has also expressed concern about the year ahead. both companies shares are down. the motor industry's fight—back against growing opposition to diesel

has moved up a gear with a strong defence of commercial vehicles. the industry's trade body, the society of motor manufacturers and traders, has warned people not to ignore the "essential role" diesel commercial vehicles play in keeping the uk economy moving. now, let's take you back to early this year when us telecoms giant verizon reached a deal with yahoo to buy its internet business for £3.49 billion. well, a yes vote by shareholders injune would make yahoo's boss a very rich woman. chief executive marissa mayer stands to make more than £145 million from her stock options. samirajoins us samira joins us now. marissa mayer has her critics, how are they

feeling about this? marissa mayer was brought in to yahoo to try and turn the company around. in five yea rs turn the company around. in five years she wasn't able to do that. some analysts feel she was given a task that was herbing leanan in nature and it was very, very difficult and she wasn't able to fully accomplish that. then the question becomes well, why are we seeing a massive pay out? part of the reason has to do with the stock value of yahoo. in the five years that marissa mayer has been at the helm of the company the stock price has shot up more than 200%. but it doesn't really have much to do with the core businesses of yahoo. it has to do with some of the investments that yahoo has, most crucially, it has invested in alibaba and now we have seen the alibaba stock rocketed, alibaba became a publicly traded company and as a result that stock has gone up and lifted the

value of yahoo hence why you're seeing a big pay—out for her.l value of yahoo hence why you're seeing a big pay-out for her. a lot depends on the vote injune. is it likely to go through? no one really believes that this the vote on 8th june isn't going to go through. there have been some problems with regards to the sale to verizon, it was when it was revealed there were two massive data breaches and as a result, we saw that verizon had renegotiated how much it was going to pay for yahoo. keep in mind marissa mayer was punished financially as a result of that and had to let go of some of the bonuses she would have received in the years 2016 and 2017 because it was felt that herself and some of her executives didn't do enough in terms of investigations with regards to the data breaches. thank you very much. in other business news: wikipedia's co—founderjimmy wales is planning

a news service that combines the work of professional journalists and volunteers. his goal is for wikitribune to offer "factual and neutral" articles and combat "fa ke news". the service will be ad—free and free—to—read, so it will rely on donations. the french carfirm psa peugeot—citroen is under investigation by french prosecutors for cheating diesel emission tests. reporters from the reuters and afp news agencies say they have been told by judicial sources that the company is being investigated for breaking consumer protection laws. psa said its vehicles have never been fitted with software to let its diesel engines deceive pollution tests. first daughter, ivanka trump, is among some of the world's most powerful women from business and politics meeting in berlin today under the title the w20. the group wants to highlight the issue of women's economic participation and empowerment while reducing the gender employment gap by 25% by 2025. she said herfather

she said her father empowered women. yesterday saw markets in the green across europe. the cac 40 in paris was up 4% and it is holding on to those gains. whitbread which owns costa coffee and premier inn reported a 6% rise in profit to under £560 million. carpet right‘s share price is down after the retailer said its full year profits would be at the lower end of the forecasts. that's all the business news for now. president trump's daughter, ivanka, is meeting the german chancellor, angela merkel, on herfirst international trip since being given

an official position in the trump administration. ivanka is an influential adviser to her father, but there's been criticism in the us about the nature of her role in the white house. richard galpin reports. ivanka trump, here on the left, taking the stage in berlin for a women's summit. alongside her, globalfigures including the german chancellor, angela merkel. for the daughter of the us president, these are unprecedented steps. an official foreign visit and this before the president himself has made his first trip abroad. she's openly pushing the policy agenda back home. sadly the united states is one of the only countries in the world, the only developed country, that does not have a paid leave policy for the benefit of families. first daughter ivanka trump takes to the world stage, making her first big international trip... back in the united states, all of this is headline news.

already an influential adviser to herfather with her own office in the white house, ivanka trump now seems to be working to improve relations between the us and germany. when donald trump met the german leader angela merkel in washington last month, it didn't appear to go well. but at one of the meetings, ivanka trump was placed next to the chancellor and they seemed to strike up a relationship, leading to the invitation to attend today's summit in berlin. i definitely think that for angela merkel, it's a diplomatic move, very strategic, going via ivanka trump to improve relationships with the us. while that benefits angela merkel, it also pushes ivanka trump even more into the limelight, raising further questions about the role of the president's family in the white house. artificial intelligence is now a key part of our everyday lives —

it's most commonly in our smartphones. our devices learn something about us every time we use them. now a new report says the uk should be doing more to make the most of this technology. tim muffett explains. let's get you all set up. elaine has the most common cause of blindness in europe and america — age—related macular degeneration. there is no cure, but scanners like this allow doctors to identify and manage the condition. but more scanners means more scans, which then need analysing by specialists such as piers keane. if you go and have a check for your glasses, you'll often be offered to have an oct scan done. if there's any deviation from the normal, no matter how slight, they will refer patients in urgently to the hospital eye services. and the patients who do have the really sight—threatening conditions are not getting seen quickly enough.

so moorfields eye hospital has launched a research project with deep minds, an artificial intelligence company owned by google. we're going to use artificial intelligence, or machine learning, to train an algorithm to recognise the commonest causes of blindness. most of us encounter machine learning without realising. it's a type of artificial intelligence that allows our phones to recognise our voice or can tag ourface in a photo. we're at an early stage and we need to think about how society copes with those changes and how we do it in a way that the benefits of the machine learning increase our social well—being. the royal society wants machine learning integrated into uk business strategy. more sophisticated digital skills taught in schools and universities, and clearer rules on data ownership. should medical information, for example, be shared with private companies? is there a danger here when it comes to patient privacy? this is historical data which we have completely anonymised. what i want to do is simply

allow a patient to be seen within 24 hours. would you like the beer to have more or less smokiness? one london brewery is using machine learning to continually tweak its product. beer drinkers provide feedback, data is analysed, and the recipe changed each month. machine learning is transforming the way many companies do business. the actor tom hardy has helped to foil a crime and police are appealing for pictures and witnesses. police in richmond say mr hardy detained one of two people who went through a red light on a stolen moped and crashed into another vehicle. he stopped the suspect after he'd fled the scene. both suspects were eventually taken to hospital with minor injuries. action man on screen as well as off screen. now the weather forecast. ben,

atina, thank you. it is a day of showers, wintry ones across the uk. it has been snowing on and off across parts of scotland for the second day in a row. we really love this picture of a highland cow! we have got fair—weather cloud around. it is not showers or snow all over the place. there is some fine weather around too. it has been beautiful across the south today, but now the clouds have increased and the showers in the north are moving further southwards. so they will be reaching the south coast as well later on in the south coast as well later on in the afternoon and early evening and in fact, there has been thunder and lightening across parts of north midlands and the north of england and more to come through the rest of today. sunshine, rain and sun sheub and rain and so on. most of that will be rain today, occasionally we'll have sleet, hail and across the highlands there, particularly the highlands there, particularly the higher ground, there will be snow settling through this evening and overnight once again and you can

see the strong arctic winds continuing to blow through the course of this evening and tonight and bringing further showers into eastern districts and perhaps into east anglia and maybe into the south east, but western areas will be clearer and colder and lighter winds and hence a frost. tomorrow, high pressure you can see behind me, it's trying to build in. high pressure means dry or settled weather, but not just yet. at this stage we means dry or settled weather, but notjust yet. at this stage we are under the influence of a colder air strea m under the influence of a colder air stream coming in from the north and the colder air stream will bring further showers and perhaps to the north york moors and maybe snow across the moors there into lincolnshire, the east midlands, east anglia and the london area. here, i think, east anglia and the london area. here, ithink, a risk of east anglia and the london area. here, i think, a risk of hailstorms and thunder, but western areas better around liverpool bay and into whales, much, much brighter conditions for wednesday. thursday, the jet stream is coming conditions for wednesday. thursday, thejet stream is coming in conditions for wednesday. thursday, the jet stream is coming in from the north. that effectively means that our weather is coming from the north and as soon as we cut off this northerly air stream things will warm up, but notice rather than it

coming from the north, you can see the aircoming the coming from the north, you can see the air coming the lantic, that means the weather will start to warm up. by the time we get to friday, this arm of the jet stream here will start sending milder air in our direction. by friday things will be feeling milderment you can see double figure temperatures there, evenin double figure temperatures there, even in glasgow and up to 15 celsius in london, given we get some sunshine. we have got the bank holiday weekend. this is our thoughts. it looks like saturday should be fairly bright. by the time we get to sunday, there could be rain across south—western parts of the country and things are going to be quite a bit milder. that's the latest. thank you for watching. this is bbc news.

i'm annita mcveigh. the headlines at 3pm. theresa may targets labour heartlands in the south of wales saying only she can offer ‘strong and stable leadership in the national interest‘. give me a mandate to lead britain, give me a mandate to speak for britain, give me a mandate to fight for britain and give me a mandate to deliver for britain. the prime minister urges labour voters to turn their back on tribal politics. labour sets out its approach to brexit if it wins the general election — pledging the rights of eu citizens already in the uk will be protected. on day one of a labour government, we will immediately guarantee that

all eu nationals currently living in the uk will see no change